Knights of the Old Republic: Genesis of a Jedi
by machievelli
Summary: My own novel length version of the game, written back in 2005, but overtaken by events
1. Chapter 1

Author's Notes:

Back in 2005 (Sept) I posted the first of what I called KOTOR Excerpts. I was working on a novel length work based on the game. I had contacted someone linked to LucasArts in the book section, and they were frantic for it. However as I do not have an agent, I could not send it to them directly.

In the game when I played it, the Echani was just a name; no background of the race, nothing beyond the weapons marked as manufactured by them(I know, because about a week after starting my game, I looked them up on Wookiepedia, which had the same dearth of data. So I took it upon myself to create them. When I wrote my own work The Beginning, which spans about four decades of history before the Republic existed, I went so far as to create their homeworld, religion, and even jokingly created a native bird named the Millennium Falcon.

As we all know, Atris in TSL is Echani, and everyone now assumes they all have platinum blond hair. When I wrote this TSL had not come out. As Danika is a redhead, I surmised that there are some racial variations, as we have here on Earth, so she is from another group of people on the same planet with red rather than blond hair. So sue me.

Of course my attempt has been overtaken by events; another author published first. So I posted the book in it's entirety over at Lucasforums under the same screen name. Now I'm letting all of you see it...

Knights of the Old Republic:

Genesis of a Jedi

Archivist's Notes:

Little is known of the past of Padawan Danika Wordweaver. As a Jedi Consular, she spent most of her life traveling and the Jedi Civil War kept her constantly on the move. Her life before the war is only a brief Republic service record before she joined the order.

What was found out before her disappearance and possible death are fragmentary, and the records of this volume came not from those Republic files, or her own words to others, but rather from the two droids that accompanied her during the Sith war, T3M4, and HK47.

Danika was reticent about her past in person, and it wasn't until long after she had left on her last mission that what is now known of her early life came to light.

She had left the droids mentioned above on board her ship the Ebon Hawk which was recovered last year when the Jedi Exile Marai Devos returned from Malachor V. Perhaps she felt through the force that it was soon to be her time to join it as all of us do when we pass on. She and the _Ebon Hawk _vanished into the depths of space on that mission. Her fate was still a mystery six years later. Yet when I spoke to the droids just last year, they suddenly answered my questions. To quote HK47, it was now time to 'tell this tale'.

As the most recent of the archivists of the Jedi Academy, it fell to me to record for posterity what that luminary accomplished during those hectic years.

What you will read below is a compilation of many people's views of what happened during that time. Danika herself, while reticent with people, was eloquent in speaking of her past when it was recorded by her droids.

Masters Bastila Shan Jolee Bindo, Jedi Knight Juhani and Padawan learner Sasha Ot Sulem of the order, each left personal records of that time.

Carth Onasi, Canderous Ordo Mission Vao Zaalbar and others had already recorded much of what happened during that first fateful mission. I am especially indebted to the late Komad Fortuna, first adviser to the Wookiee of planet Kashyyyk, and Speaker-elect Shasha of Manaan. They gave me information that has never appeared in the records and which truth to be told, would have embarrassed Danika if it were known earlier.

Note: The record of what occurred aboard _Leviathan _came to us when _Leviathan _was captured not long before the war ended. No changes have been made in that record. Events from aboard the Star Forge came via survivors' recollections, and the use of _Soochir _by the members of _Ebon Hawk_'s crew.

Jolan Lasko, Archivist.

_A patriot is a person that has found a cause worth fighting for, worth living for, worth dying for, and worth killing for._

_ The same can be said of the Fanatic._

Memories

I have never understood why the place I came from should be important to those that speak to me. I spent a decade of my life smoothing any accent from my voice, but still everyone asks where I come from as if it delineates who and what I am. Really! Human kind lives of over 70,000 planets, and with the non-human members of the republic, there are over a hundred thousand planets that people can live on.

I think people wonder where you are from so that they can fit you into a neat cubbyhole when dealing with you as a Jedi. They want to know in the hope that with this information, they can predict your actions by what is the norm for your home world.

Yet one of the very first things a Jedi learns is how to set aside her past and what her parents taught her in those brief years before they join the order. That is part of the reason the order usually chooses children between three and eight standard years old for training. Old enough that they can understand speech, yet young enough to have few preconceptions, and almost no prejudices.

In my case as you know, where I was born and where I _remember _being born are two different things. I have wrestled with that since the War, and finally came to a decision.

I am no longer who I was, so my memories are all I have. I will die true to them.

Very well. Since I will be long dead when this record is released. I will tell you what I remember, HK47. I was born on Deralia, a world still known to 90% of the Republic for it's beautiful beaches and soft gentle rains.

But as the force has both a light and a dark side, so does my home planet. Where I came from on the Equatorial belt, it's known for the varied homicidal wildlife, and the hunters that come from throughout the galaxy to hunt them.

Deralia was settled only because someone was greedy. The Tokara Company survey ship that discovered the planet was supposed to do a survey of the entire planet. Instead they surveyed the Northern Hemisphere, saw the lush islands of what is called the Cerulean Sea, and immediately thought of all the resorts that could be built there.

I have looked at the Republic Colonial Office specifications since then. One year is supposed to be devoted to cataloging all of the life forms present on every landmass above a specific size, and verify that they are not overly dangerous. But five hundred years ago, someone on the ship, or perhaps from the Company itself greased a few palms and registered the planet five months after it's discovery. They sold settlement rights to the Chartered Deralia Company, which opened colonization on the only major continent at the same time that Tokara began construction of the hotels my home-world is best known for.

I also checked the Jedi Archives concerning the now defunct Tokara Company. This wasn't the first or the last planet they had 'forgotten' to check. Their headquarters on Coruscant closed abruptly when someone crashed a cargo ship full of Magnesite on it, blowing it and five square kilometers of the planet to dust.

Obviously an unsatisfied settler.

The colonists that came were the usual crowd, the disgruntled, those wanting more elbowroom, the ones hoping that this would be better than where they were from. There were 150,000 in that first wave.

By the end of the first planetary year (425 standard days) 5,000 remained on the main continent. Most died, for nature has no pity, and a human being is frightfully fragile. About 20,000 of those survivors had taken one look at what they were facing, and wanted no part of it. Those that fled make up the servant class at all of those luxury hotels.

The others stayed. They learned the best way to kill a Thorm, a predator the size of a medium bulk transport. How to keep the herbivore called a Wambor from stepping on your home. A useful skill when dealing with something that Thorm prides hunt.

How to gather Katkin eggs without ending up in the food chain. How to gather the seeds and pollen of the Julot, which has the local nickname of the Harpoon tree.

They thrived by being faster and meaner than any species on the planet. A child isn't even allowed out of the Kraal until she can identify every known danger, and can shoot well. Considering the possible dangers, I discovered that what I learned as a child was more useful in combat than what I learned in Boot Camp later. We're known for being self reliant, and innovative. My mother died before I even knew her. She is just a large face holding me in my memory. Father remarried when I was three.

It wasn't all danger. I remember riding Tirlat, running in the fields of Tuza grain, climbing the Jumja trees to pick a fresh melon. We also raised a few head of Kora, a local herbivore that isn't too large, only five times human size. We also raised Bezek vines that were one of our two primary ways of earning hard credits.

Bezek is classified as a Grade 2 hazardous plant because the pollen is psychoactive, and causes anything with a sense of smell to charge blindly in to get a better sniff. The flowers have poisonous needles which close on anything that enters them. The animals are sucked into the now closing flower, their fluids drained and the husks are expelled to become fertilizer.

There are only three animals that can safely get near a Bezek vine when in flower. The Goothi bird, which fertilizes the seeds, the Wambor, which eats the vine, and is too big to get stung, and man. But only a fool walks outside when the flowers are in bloom without a breather mask.

The nectar is sold to perfumers, who make some of the most sensuous perfumes known to the galaxy. The fruit is pressed for wine considered an aphrodisiac.

But we're best known for the hunting and the guides that take you to your prey. There are over fifty predators, ten herbivores, and sixty varieties of aquatic wildlife classed as Galactic grade game, meaning that when you hunt them, the odds are even as to who gets taken as a trophy even with body armor and military grade heavy weapons.

I think that is why the Jedi didn't discover me earlier. Jedi don't hunt, and view killing as something that sometimes must be done, not something to do for sport. They rarely came to our planet as judge because our local laws are draconian when it comes to crime. We have few if any civil violations because we are taught from birth to be bluntly honest. This may sound odd but survival depends on telling the truth and cooperation. A lie cannot protect you against nature, only a friend can. A man known for being self-serving, or lying doesn't get help when he needs it. There is no colder way to die than to call for help when in need, and not get it.

By the age of five, I was going out on hunts my father led to help with children that some brought with them. Finally as a guide myself.

Most of the children were stuck-up prigs who looked down on me because I didn't know their planets, music, actors, Etc. They had inflated views of their own importance because they did know these things. There were times when I could have been a bit slipshod, and someone would have ended up dead. But even with my irritation with them, I never allowed them to come to harm. They survived to go home, either with the trophy their parent had taken, or, sometimes, with the coffin that held that person's remains.

Some however gave me a deep yearning to go to their home-worlds, to see sunrise on Correl, to watch the waves of Chanderal smash into the cliffs at a speed unrivaled by any flying machine. My father always laughed at that. He hadn't even been as far as our capitol city of Morla.

I was seven when I picked up an unusual hobby. The Echani Sword dance.

An Echani prefect had come along with his children, Bortu and Kalendra. Bortu was three years my senior, Kalendra was 8, a year older than I. They spent a month on the planet hunting, and I was hired to be their companion.

One evening ritual I was entranced by was when they practiced with ritual brands and swords held in both hands. I had learned the use of the Panga, the local bush knife; I had even learned the practical use of one as a weapon. But the way I had learned to use a blade was as dull as a dark room in comparison. It was like comparing dancing and just shuffling your feet.

Bortu was a master with his twin blades, placed in the same sheath, they were drawn, a stud pressed, and there were two separate composite blades. When he practiced, he used a pole with the bark still on it as his target. He would stand before it, then would leap into movement, the blades whipping from all directions, taking strips from the bark without touching the wood beneath.

But Kalendra was magic in comparison. She carried a ritual brand, folded into a single sheath, as were their twin swords. But when drawn, and the stud pressed, it snapped out, making a twin bladed staff. When seen side by side, Bortu's movements could be seen by me to be mechanical. Kalendra danced as if the blade and the target were partners.

I have heard since I left my home that the Echani know nothing of war, that they are dilettantes, their fighters too hard to handle, their energy weapons underpowered, their ships too lightly armored, their swords too difficult to master.

To all their detractors, I say this; their warships are faster and more maneuverable than any in the galaxy. Almost fighters writ huge. Their fighters are like juvenile Tirga needing only a gentle hand to guide them to wonders few craft can achieve. Their hand weapons are light, but the Echani have always believed that a weapon is a needle, not a fire hose. A calm cool shot can kill any enemy with an Echani blaster, and can pick a target small enough that it looks like a miracle.

War was not a bloody bludgeoning struggle to the Echani; it was a game where those who knew the rules won. Pilots are trained to maneuver as violently as possible in simulators, and only those that can do so consistently go on to a real fighter craft. Their ground troops learned to shoot the target, not the landscape.

And the blade...

The blade is taught to all; after all it it part of their religion. But only those who know their own bodies can attain true mastery. They call blade fighting the 'dance of death'.

After watching them for a few days, I asked to try my hand at them. Bortu refused, laughing. He had been practicing since he was six, and still didn't feel he had mastered the twin blades. He didn't expect someone a year older to even scratch the surface.

But that evening, Kalendra drew me outside where no one would watch. "Dance with me." She whispered.

"Dance?" I felt uncomfortable. Dancing was something the old people did, and it was linked to passage rites. She must have seen my thoughts because she laughed a light tingly sound that caused my blood to race a bit.

"If you wish to learn the dance of death, I must see you move. Stand as I stand, move exactly as I do, and I will judge whether you can learn."

She took a stance with one foot advanced, hands even with her waist, and I matched it. "When I move a hand, you must move the opposite. She pushed her right hand forward. I measured the same distance with my left. "Excellent. Once you have the hands down, we shall add the feet. Now begin."

She moved, and I matched her, slowly shifting first one hand then the other out and in, up and down. "Now two hands." She moved one up and out, the other in and down.

She stopped, picking up two Bezek stakes about as tall as we were. Again she began moving, my motions matching. Now I saw the ends of the staffs as blades, my motions intercepting hers. She began moving her feet, stepping right and left in a circle with me at the center. But when I also moved, we became moths circling a central flame.

She began speeding up, and I kept up with her as long as I could. I missed a block, and she tapped my shoulder. She stopped, stepping back, and dropped the staff on the pile.

I was crushed. I had failed. But the next evening she was back. She had trimmed two staffs down, and tarred the ends. "The worst part of learning to sword dance is learning to keep your body out of the way. Every time you see tar on you, picture a wound."

Bortu had decided that he wanted to actually learn to hunt, so he spent most of his time out with the others. That left Kalendra and I alone. During the next weeks we were inseparable. During the day we hiked the nearby hills, where the hunting had cleared the major wildlife, thus limiting our dangers. In the afternoons when it was hot we would go to the soaking pool below the house, and lay back against the bank where it had been tiled, just relaxing in the cool liquid.

In the evenings we practiced the sword dance. I despaired of ever becoming as good as she already was, but she'd hug me laughing, and told me that two years of practice was all she had that I had not.

The time flew by so fast that I suddenly realized one day that her father was due to leave in less than a week. I waited until father and the hunters had left, and took her hand.

"Do you want to see what I do for fun when there are no hunters? Something I have never shown another visitor to this planet?" I whispered. She nodded eagerly. We picked up our side arms and pangas, and I led her through the woods to the Grove.

A few kilometers from the house, there was a clearing large enough to land cargo ships in. No one knows why the trees never grew back. Small herbivores kept the small plants and grasses down until it looked like a manicured lawn, and now it was summer home to the Tirlat herd. I led her to the edge, touched her lips to make sure she would be quiet, and pointed.

At first glance a tirlat is funny. The average adult is about twice the size of a land speeder, with a barrel shaped body wide at the front so that it's mouth can seine in pollen and smaller flying prey, and pointed at the back end. Their stomach acid burns so hot that they have hydrogen left from their diet, and this is stored in the bladders that lay all around their body. They drift along sometimes with the wind, but when they want to move, they have ribbon wings along the sides. They are an anomaly on the planet, totally inoffensive, and nothing on the planet eats them while they are alive. They look like a stiff breeze would kill them, though we have hurricanes that level the forests and I have yet to see a tirlat die of anything but old age.

To ride a tirlat, you have to imitate a Jollo cat, an arboreal predator the size of a human being. A primate, it climbs as fast as a human walks, and runs down branches, dropping on it's prey from above. Not that a hunting Jollo cat would be able to hurt a tirlat. The cat would find that the rubbery skin of even a juvenile was too thick to be penetrated by her claws. The skin was also slick. All a baby tirlat has to do to escape a Jollo cat is fly.

I set my climbing belt for 10 percent gravity, motioned for Kalendra to do likewise, and leaped straight up at the lowest branch five meters above my head. I swarmed up on top, and caught her hand as she followed. We ran along the wide branch to where we were above the manicured land, and I pointed behind us at the tirlat I called Spooky. He got that name because his wings are almost translucent, and he looked like a ghost tirlat compared to the younger ones. Spooky I was told was older than the human settlement on the continent. He was slowly sculling toward us, his wings barely rippling.

I crouched down, uncoiling my climbing line. "When he flies under we drop down." I waved the line, "This goes under his chin, and you sit down or lay down fast." We waited impatiently as he sculled closer. Then he was below us, moving by. I gripped her hand, and as his body began moving below us I said, "Now!" And we dropped together. I flung the line in a practiced motion, making the weighted end spin down and around the neck. I caught the loose end as I dropped down to sit with my legs in front of the wings. "Sit down!" I shouted. Kalendra dropped down behind me, her legs straddling me, her arms around my waist.

It was good she had done so, because the ribbons stiffened into blades, and Spooky tried to escape. The wings came up then down in a powerful thump, and we shot forward. It wasn't fast, even a child's speeder bike is faster, but along with the slick skin, it would have thrown us backward off the body.

I held the line with both hands, and she held onto me. "It's like a swoop bike!" She shouted. I had never even seen a swoop bike before, so I had nothing to compare it to. Then she gave the trilling wail of the Echani war cry. Spooky reacted to this with another thumping sweep of his wings.

We shouted in joy, then first she, then I, then together, we gave another cry, urging the gentle animal to fly even faster. As we flew I showed her how to guide him. Pull on one side, and he would move the opposite direction. Thump his barrel with your feet, and he would climb, though not very high. Lean forward, and he would head down until his belly ruffled the longer grass.

Kalendra leaned into me, her hands pressed against the front of my body, her head turned to lie against my back. "Let's just let it fly for a while. I don't know what I might do if I get more excited." She whispered. We flew along in silence. As our movement and noise died, Spooky went back to rippling his wings. There was silence and peace. There is nothing like it in the galaxy.

Finally I guided him back to the glade. "We have to get off now."

"Must we?"

"He will get sick if we ride him all day. We can come back later in the week." I explained.

"How do we dismount?"

When I say now, tuck and roll backwards." I felt her head nodding against my back. I released the line I held on the left, pulling it up to coil it again. "Ready," I gave one last war cry. "Now!"

As before he snapped his wings straight out, and pounded the air. But without the line, we rolled backwards like a stone down a hill. Two rolls and suddenly we fell toward the ground. Kalendra landed sprawled, and I frantically stiffened my arms so that I landed above her without smashing down on her.

We giggled, looking at each other in the sheer enjoyment of the moment. Then the laughter died as we just drank in each other. Her hand rose, and touched my cheek, a feather touch. I leaned into the hand. She leaned upward, and her lips brushed mine. Her eyes held a sadness I didn't understand.

"If only we had met last year." She whispered. Then she was pushing me aside so she could stand.

The walk home was silent. Her mood had gone from happy to depressed like a light flicking off, and I didn't know why. She wouldn't answer my questions. That evening, we practiced, but I was able to get past her guard easily. She wasn't concentrating.

Instead of going in the house as was usual, she led me to the pool, stripped off her clothes, and slid into the water. I followed her, and when I was seated, she curled up in my lap. We were sitting in reverse of when we had ridden me at the back with my arms around her. She leaned into me, and I held my friend. I felt her jerk, and she turned, burying her face against my chest as she cried. I didn't know what I had done to make her so sad. I asked but she merely shook her head, and held on to me as if I was a lifeline to sanity. "Hold me like you would never let me go." She husked, and we sat there for an hour until finally we had to go in.

The last week was both sublime pleasure and sheer torture for both of us. We didn't want to be parted, but being together was painful for some reason I didn't understand. She was constantly touching my hand, my face. Hugging me just when she was in the mood to hold me. Sometimes when the mood struck us, we would hold each other, our lips brushing each other's faces. I had never known such contentment. We rode the tirlat twice more, and every night after practice, we spent an hour in the pool cuddled.

Finally her father was done with his hunting, and the next day they were going to leave. That night, she drew me outside. I thought we were going to practice, but instead she went to the pool and slid into the water. I followed her, and she cuddled against me again. "I don't want to go." She said, her head against my chest. "I want to stay in this pool, in your arms forever."

"I don't want you to go either." I whispered into her hair. "If only you could stay here."

"But I can't." She sighed. "I must go. But will you promise me something?"

"Anything."

"Promise you won't forget me."

"Never."

She kissed me one last time. The next morning they left, and I spent three days crying. My parents watched me during those days with what I took to be amusement. Later I understood that they knew what I was going through, and their amusement was only the feeling every person has seeing children grow up.

My only real pleasure after she left was the dance.

It wasn't until years later, after I had left my home world that I finally had access to a library computer. When I looked up the Echani, I discovered that their mating rituals are deeply ingrained into their society. A boy can live to adulthood unencumbered, but a girl must be bonded at age thirteen. Nothing can break that life-bond except for death. Nothing is allowed to. When a child is bonded, she leaves her home, and lives with her bond-mate's family until marriage. Their romantic fiction all hinges on people that break their bond to be with another, and the horrible events that ensue.

I discovered that Bortu had not been her brother, he had been her fiance-bond-mate. The man I had thought was her father was actually his.

There is however a self-bond. When the child loves another, or loves an ideal itself. Those Echani that become Jedi claim this. A self-bond has no boundaries, and is considered just as valid as a life-bond.

When someone mentions that an acquaintance is Echani there is a lot of nudging and winking going on. It is assumed because they have no strictures on marriage, that the Echani are lustful beings.

Nothing could be farther from the truth. An Echani wise man once said 'if you lust after a woman today, you are madly in love with the clothes she decided to wear'. They believe not in following sexual desire, but love. To an Echani, sex is no more the be all of love than hair color is the end all of a woman. Love in their eyes is caring about another person so much that their well being is all you worry about. Making sure they never want is more important than your own needs. This extends in family, where children receive what they need whether it be a hug or a spanking. It extends in society by allowing love to flow freely between all.

"If only we had met last year." She had said. She had meant it too. Under their laws, she could have claimed a self-bond to me. She would have left her home and become my what, wife? Lover? Significant Other? The fact that we were of the same sex would not have mattered to her people. Bio-geneticists are able to blend the DNA of any pair of the same species. They could have taken one of our eggs, fertilized it with the DNA of the other, even adjusted it so that we could have male children. We could have borne such children naturally for the Echani feel that all aspects of life both pleasurable and painful are meant to be experienced.

When I'm sad, I can picture us sitting in that same pool, with our children splashing around us, content in all things. But it didn't happen. If she had bonded with me, I wouldn't have become a Jedi. I would not be here now. How much would my life have changed if that had happened?

Not much of what happened in the Galaxy really affected us there. Our fleet was a pair of old Moravian _Kontor _class gunboats over a century old. Resorts and hunting preserves aren't strategic targets. We knew that the Mandalorian war was happening, but except for a dip in business, we didn't really feel the affects of it. When I had just turned twenty-one, the Sith war began. Again we were not really affected.

In my twenty-third year, my life changed. A Republic officer came to Deralia on a recruiting drive. Along with others he scoured the resorts looking for likely young people. But this one decided to check out the homesteads of the continent as well. It was pure luck. I hadn't found any of the local boys that interested me, and sexual frustration can cause you to make abrupt decisions.

It was the first time someone had actually come to our Kraal that wasn't a neighbor or a hunter. When he arrived, I was sword dancing.

Of course I didn't have a proper Echani ritual brand. They are hand made for the user, and while you can use someone else's it is slightly uncomfortable. But once I had felt comfortable with the idea of an actual blade instead of a tarred stick, I had taken two pangas a section of conduit large enough to slide over the handles, and made a double bladed sword.

When I danced, I was in my own world. Nothing mattered except for the sweep of the blade, the placement of the feet, the click of the blade hitting the pole. I was almost as good now as Kalendra had been when she began teaching me, and I could feel her standing back and watching me with that gentle smile.

I stopped, and began to dismount the panga blades. That was when I heard a gentle clapping sound behind me. I looked over my shoulder at the man in a uniform I didn't know.

"Well danced youngling. You're not a local?"

"Yes I am." I replied.

"Then where did you learn the Echani Sword dance?"

"From a hunter's daughter."

"Ah. May I speak with you?"

My brow rose at that. What might he have to say?

"I have already spoken with your father, as the law requires." I nodded. Except for hunters who didn't seem to care much about any local law the Republic representatives had always been punctilious about obeying them. Of course the first person that abused the trust of his guides and their families could easily find their rifle unloaded when something charged them.

Obviously he was either unmarried, or from a world that didn't accept concubines, slavery, or polygamy. To speak with me without permission could have caused an... accident.

"I am recruiting for the Kolari Sector defense forces."

"For?"

"The majority of the fleet has gone over to the Sith. Soldiers are desperately needed to preserve the Republic-" I raised my hand.

I finished dismantling my weapon, then turned to go up on the verandah. My father was sitting with a hunter and some beaters, talking about the hunt they planned that day. He saw me coming, and raised his hand for silence.

"You spoke with him?" He asked. I nodded. "You going?" I shrugged, then nodded again. His eyes were sad, and he hugged me, something he rarely did. "You be careful. Hear?"

"Like a Bojuum hunt, father."

He smiled. "Tell your mother." He turned to resume his seat and conversation. That was as much of a goodbye as I expected from him. I walked into the house. Mother had a hunting pack already packed, sitting on the kitchen table. She was staring at it as if she was going to cry.

I touched it with my fingers. "Am I that easy to predict?"

To anyone who knows you?" She stood, and with a soft painful cry she hugged me. "Be careful."

"I will."

"Come home." She finished, then she turned and fled the room.

I carried my pack, tossed it in his speeder, then leaned against it until he decided to leave.

The one thing that has bothered me since that time is that I never did go home again. I had promised my stepmother that I would but I never have.

War

When I arrived at the Kolari system, the Jedi Civil War was nearing the end of it's first year. The only major change from when the recruiter had spoken to me was that the Corellians were supplying equipment in return for ground forces. Since the enemy was starting to move toward the sector, the local militias were starting to build up.

I have constantly been berated since I became a Jedi about the military. The Republic doesn't have one per se. Each planet or alliance even corporation has it's own military force, with their own weapons ships and even training. There isn't even a recognized unified Academy, though the Republic Naval Academy is recognized by many. This means every military force has it's own ways of doing things.

But you have to understand that the Republic is a very loose alliance, based primarily on trade and currency. Not a solid Federal union like say the Corellian Trade Alliance. The idea had been considered when the Republic had first been formed 20 millennia ago, but the sheer prospect of trying to assure that the laws are the same from place to place would have been staggering.

A unified military might have made the wars we did face less bloody, but only at the expense of a massive military force that could just as easily be turned on our own people. The Galaxy has over 50 billion stars, and probably as many planets and every one of the 120,000 settled planet said the same thing. Why should we of Deralia pay for a military we only see when we need to actually fight? So they never created a unified Republic Fleet or Republic army.

Also, on a galactic scale even the largest war is a storm seen from a distance for most of us. The only Mandalorians I had seen up until that point had been hunters that came just like any other to test themselves against our game.

But war had come to us here, and the militia was mobilizing.

While we end up fighting together standardization is a joke. No two units from different planets have the same weapons. No two have ships of the same design. Also while the Galaxy is cosmopolitan, the militias are not. Most of the alien races fight in their own units, humans in their own etc.

My first six months was spent in boot camp. You can't just hand the soldiers their blasters armor and swords then send them out to die. Not if you want to have most of them a week from now. Instead you take these raw recruits, and teach them how to use the weapons.

I did rather well. Except for the folding stock the shortened barrel and the option to set it for automatic fire, the blaster rifle I was issued was a Corellian hunting rifle. The pistol was also Corellian, and something I had carried in the field at home. The meter long swords were slightly longer than the panga I had used at home, and made of the same composite. The only difference I saw was that while at home we wore them on the hip, the sheath for a sword was on your back with the handle even with your head.

Our blades had to be made from the composites developed by the Verpine using a thing lattice layer of Mandalorian Beskar iron. Ever since the Jedi had developed the light saber, people had tried and finally found something that would block or at least retard it. A light saber would slide along the blade, nicking but not slicing through it. Our armor used the same kinds of composites, with additional layers to stop or deflect blaster fire damage from flames or cold, even sonic weapons.

But we were happy to have the weapons and armor, because for the first time in fifty years, we faced Dark Jedi along with the Sith.

Over two thousand years ago, a sect of the Jedi had broken away. They had fled the Republic, and joined the Sith.

Originally, the Sith had been a race, a violently xenophobic race. They had attacked the Republic throughout the centuries, and finally had been beaten back to their home world. When the first dark Jedi arrived, there had been bloodshed, but finally the Sith accepted them for their nihilistic view of life in general, and the galaxy in particular. For centuries they had stayed on that planet, but a thousand years ago, they struck out at the galaxy again. So started the first war actually called the Sith war. They were beaten, but every few centuries, they would try yet again.

Maybe that is why a lot of people can't differentiate between Jedi and Sith. Both have abilities that a normal person can not even conceive of. The only difference between them is; are they friendly to you or not? If you have ever had a Jedi adjudicate your case in the other person's favor what do you think?

Much later when I began Jedi training, I learned the main difference is the same as governments or men themselves. Some people revel in the power, and want more. Others make decisions in their lives where they take the easier path rather than doing what has to be done, no matter how hard. Others merely see the galaxy as chaos, and try to impose some sort of order on it.

Like most people then, I looked on the Jedi as odd people with powers I could not match. When I faced my first dark Jedi, they seemed the same. The first Jedi I ever met was Padawan Loras of Beretell. She was assigned to my ship when I left boot camp. She looked about as dangerous as a kitten. Just a short jolly fat woman.

To most boot camp is six months of hell. To me it was home with fifty people living in the same room. The hardship I endured was dealing with fifty people from twenty-seven planets, and forty different sets of rules they had been raised by. It wasn't until the fifth time someone made a sexual overture to me that I finally understood what was being offered. That last was so blatant that I would have had to be mentally deficient to misunderstand. I didn't pair off, though a lot of my classmates did. That just didn't interest me. I passed through basic and the advanced courses with barely a ripple. By the time we were in the last weeks, I was tapped as a rifle instructor.

I graduated and was assigned to fleet operations. I was assigned with those that survived training to the Corellian Frigate _Ashtree Corona_. The next year was taken up in raids on various Sith controlled worlds. A lot of my classmates died, but somehow I did not. By the end of that year, I was a squad leader. I fought in three fleet actions, including the ambush at Zanebra where Revan fell.

As ground troops we saw little direct action except for boarding actions. During ship to ship actions we were assigned to turbolaser batteries, and kept them operational. At Zanebra, we were one of five ships that were pounding _Behemoth_, the enemy flagship. Suddenly we were ordered to check fire, and immediately retarget _Leviathan_, the flagship of the Sith Second column. We pounded her, and would have probably blown her into dust, but suddenly she turned, and to our amazement, fired her entire starboard broadside not at us, but at _Behemoth_!

Already badly damaged, life pods began spewing away from the crippled ship. Then she exploded. Our scanners were confused for several fatal seconds. _Ashtree Corona _was the closest ship, and _Leviathan_ concentrated all of her fire on us.

It was like being in a waste can with the gods playing a field hockey with you. I had already been in my suit, and had ducked below the cannon to repair an electronic fault. That saved me when a blast gutted the gun and killed everyone else in the compartment. I tried to contact the bridge but internal communications was out. I finally made my way to rescue workers farther inboard.

For the next hours the crew was busy just trying to save the ship. Of the contingent of fifty ground troopers aboard, I was one of only ten that survived. The crew dragooned those of us that were handy with tools into service. Six including myself were assigned to rescue operations. All scanners were dead. For all we knew, a thousand Sith were coming. But we had our duty. Two of the men I assigned to damage control, finding the pitifully few survivors in the wreckage aboard. The other four came with me. We put on hard suits with thruster packs, and went to see what survivors might be floating past in life pods.

This should have been simple, read a beacon, tractor it in, save a life. But the Sith had taken to dumping pods with thermal detonators or seismic charges rigged to blow. Either would badly damage a ship that tractored it in. So we had to go out and personally check each pod before the boat bay officer would bring them aboard. They simply saw the demographics. It was less expensive in the long run to risk a single trooper that a billion credit ship. Just harder on the troopers.

It was simple, really. Jet up to the transparisteel view port, and look inside. If you see a body, check to see if it is Sith or Republic. If you see no one, set a beacon on it, and an EOD team would disable any traps. If you see a bomb of any kind, you blow it in place. If there is a Republican troop in it, you tag it with a different beacon, and it is towed in ASAP. If it's Sith, and they appeared to be armed, you tapped on the plast, showed them the limpet mine in your other hand, and make a motion to ask if they were going to surrender. If they did, you used the EOD beacon. If not? That was what the mine was for.

This sounds harsh, but some of the Sith weren't in the surrendering mood. If not, we saw no reason to deal with them beyond making sure they passed on. Most of the surviving prisoners I had seen were just as dejected as I would have been in their place.

The battle had run away from us. Though we didn't know it, the battle was over. _Leviathan _and those ships able to escape had run. Not that we were in much better shape. It had started with forty-five of ours versus forty of theirs. Out of their fleet, only five ships had escaped. Of ours only three were hyper drive capable. There were a dozen hulks that had to be either repaired or destroyed of what both fleets had left. We'd won, but I didn't think we could afford many victories like it.

I was at this for over fifteen hours; my suit was down to the emergency air pack when I called into the ship. "_Ashtree Corona _this is unit seven. Area appears clear, down to reserve air. Ready to return."

Before _Ashtree Corona _could answer, a different voice cut in. "Unit seven, this is _Endar Spire_ do not, I repeat, do not return to _Ashtree Corona _at this time. Sweep your sector again."

"Wait a minute, _Endar Spire_! These are my people you are risking. What is left out there worth their lives?" Asked Commander Roofan. Our captain Bendar Solo had died with over half our crew.

"Commander, one of the pods from Behemoth contained some of our boarding crew. The Jedi aboard here says General Bastila might be aboard it."

Bastila! I had heard of her, or course. When this ambush had been planned, Bastila was going to use a Jedi power called battle mediation to slip through the defenses of the enemy flagship intending to capture or kill the dark lord Revan.

"_Endar Spire_, I don't care if my wife, the entire senate and the damn Jedi council is still out there! I can have a fresh troop with full supplies out there in an hour."

"They might not have an hour!"

I looked around. "_Ashtree Corona _this is unit seven."

"Go seven."

Maybe I can at least localize her pod for a follow on."

There was silence. I hadn't considered that I had just undercut my superior. Bastila was important enough that the Republic had bet 10,000 lives on this attack, and lost most of them. That made her more important than I was. I had made calls like this before since I was made squad leader. Who was more important? In this case, Bastila was.

"Unit seven give fuel state and consumables."

I looked at the read out. Both were in the yellow, but I had seen them as bad before. "Fuel 17%, air four zero minutes." That was bad, but not unrecoverable. I had enough fuel to head out a short distance, at the expense of being plucked out of space like a fly when I came back on a ballistic course.

"Understood Unit Seven. You have permission to make one, I repeat, one check run. Set return alarm for fifteen minutes of air. If you have not found this pod by that time, you will return aboard immediately."

"Understood." I lifted the scan pack, but still there wasn't anything out there according to it. No beacon no loose mass the size of a pod. Only a thick debris field a short distance away. A pod could have been jammed in there, and beacons did fail. I targeted it, and set the thruster pack. My fuel was down to 11 when I pulled up outside of it.

From what I could recognize, I knew this was wreckage from _Behemoth_. A ship almost five times the size of the _Ashtree Corona_. I began scanning it item by item, anything big enough to conceal a pod.

Something caught my eye, and I looked toward one of the larger pieces. I could have sworn I saw something there, but there was nothing on the scanner.

The section was three decks through, and an ID marker on one deck said it came from level 4. The decks had been first cut by turbolaser fire, then sheared apart by the explosion. I could see parts of deck three and five from here. And in the middle of that mess was what looked like an undeployed pod! " Have a pod in sight. Going in to check."

I spun in place, and was aiming for the pod when something hit me from behind. I had been so intent on my search I had forgotten to set my proximity alarm. I was slammed forward, spinning helplessly. My systems were going haywire. The thruster pack controls all read dead. I had no maneuvering control.

"Problem." I said. The spin and thrust was throwing me past the hulk, and if I didn't catch something fast I was going to fall forever. The Com officer was shouting questions, but I ignored him. I saw a section of conduit that thrust out like a spear, and I reached for it, putting all of my effort into catching that metal lifeline. I saw it flash by, and closed my eyes.

Suddenly I felt a jerk as if I had been tied by my hand to a landspeeder. The torque almost ripped my arm off. As I slowed, I heard another alarm.

"Wait." I demanded, looking at the display. My air that had been above thirty was dropping like a bomb. "Air tank damaged. Give me quiet." I popped the seals, and the thruster pack spun away. Whatever had hit it had slammed into my back, and either cracked the tank, or popped the seal. If it was the tank, I was already dead. If it were the seal, I might be able to reattach it.

They tell you in suit training that you need two people when reattaching a line seal. I didn't have another person.

I caught the flailing line, and reached back. To picture my problem, visualize a metal pin sticking up just about in the center of your shoulder blades. Now take a tube in your hand, and reach back, and thread that pin into the tube without seeing it, and knowing you only have one chance to do it right. I closed my eyes again. They weren't going to help me if I failed.

There was a click after a moment, and the alarm shut off. I breathed deeply, fighting the panic that had been there. That was why I never used the adrenal stims they issue. I don't like the affect when you come down. "Got it." I reported.

"Give air state."

I opened my eyes. "I have to check the pod first."

"To Pathan's nine hells with the pod!" He almost screamed.

I ignored him. There was a stanchion within reach, and I swung across outside the transparisteel of the door. Through it I could see half a dozen crumpled bodies. On top was a woman in what looked like a Jedi robe. She's here." I tapped the stud on my armband, activating my beacon. I could hear it's siren call. Something still worked. "Home in on my signal."

"Give me your air state!" This time he did scream.

I looked at it, blinked, and looked again. The number refused to get bigger.

"Give me a situation and number. Now!"

"Bad, eight." Eight minutes of life left.

"Bad!" He giggled hysterically. "I would have said that qualified as panic! Give me a moment." I could hear him calling flight quarters to see what could be done. I knocked on the transparisteel, but the woman didn't move.

"Unit seven, uh, Danika. We can get a lander there." I could hear the worry in his voice.

"But?"

"It's going to take at least fifteen minutes."

Even with the air in the suit that left me a full five minutes with no air. I wasn't going back to the ship. I contemplated my death, and for some reason, it didn't bother me. Well whining wouldn't help. "Hurry. I am going to take a nap."

I could see the stars out there, the distant specks of ships and suits. None were close enough to reach me in time. I took my survival line, and threaded it through the stanchion and a convenient handle, then rested against the transparisteel, my face touching it. I darkened the visor. Better they didn't wake up and see a dead woman looking back.

I considered using my pharmacope to check out. When they install them in your suit, they tell you what not to take with what else. For example, number one was a painkiller, and number three a powerful adrenal stim. Together, your heart goes from zero to light speed in about three seconds, and shuts down in four. Painless, or so they say.

No. I would not go out that way. I checked it, and took a double dose of number 7, a basic sleep aid. I closed my eyes, and listened to the soft hiss of the air.

Even with the drug I knew when the air ran out. Aided by the drug, my mind tottered on the brink, then broke away from its foundations. It spun down into the depths like a wheel flying off a child's toy. After a moment, I slid down more easily, sinking into the depths of darkness to come to rest like a stone on the deepest reach of life itself, above the precipice that is death. There was no data coming in any more. I was deaf dumb and blind, and knew death was just a step away. Entirely free of all human concerns, yet alive with a lucidity and coherence.

All notions of mind, all ties of blood and family, all desires of the heart fell away, and I was nothing but that bright spark that was the essence of everything I was. Unable to resist destruction. To be alone in it's own madness of being, motiveless beyond the will to survive. I sank deeper...

I dreamed...

_ Kalendra landed sprawled, and I frantically stiffened my arms so that I landed above her without smashing down on her._

_ We giggled, looking at each other in the sheer enjoyment of the moment. Then the laughter died as we just drank in each other. Her hand rose, and touched my cheek, a feather touch. I leaned into the hand. She leaned upward, and her lips brushed mine. Her eyes held a sadness I didn't understand._

_ Bond with me, she said._

_It hadn't been like that. She had already been bonded, she couldn't break that She brushed my lips with hers again, a touch so gentle I thought I imagined it, though a jolt ran through me at the touch._

_ Join and be one with me. She said._

_ No, Kalendra hadn't said anything of the sort. She had cried, and spent time touching me as if terrified that I might disappear even as she looked. I tried to move away, but my hands were locked to the ground somehow._

_ The look in her eyes decided for me. The same look I would have expected if Kalendra had actually done this. Perhaps in death I was getting a chance to walk that other path. To sit on the porch and watch our children grow to maturity. But I was dying anyway, so what was the harm?_

_ I leaned into her kiss, and it became deeper. I felt her arms encircle me, growing tighter and tighter. I wanted to tell her to stop but my lips were locked to hers. I felt the arms tighten even more. _

_ I can't breathe!_

_ I can't br-_

-something slammed into my chest like the hammer of the gods. I could feel something being slipped over my mouth, a voice shouting, "Oh no, damn you lived this long, you're going to breathe!'

"Hypox on maximum!"

"Hit her again with the Cardio-stim!"

I felt like I had grabbed a high-tension wire, I flopped like a landed saber-trout.

"Wait. Doctor, I have a pulse!"

"Oh god, she's alive. How long was she anoxic?"

There was a long pause. I wasn't even interested in the answer. "Seven minutes." The person whispered.

"Neuro-stim?"

"At seven."

"Jack it two higher!"

"That won't help!'

"Tell her!"

I felt the bolt again. This time I could see it, a shot of blue electrical energy that danced around my eyes.

"Her body is alive, but there's nothing left upstairs." The first voice, the doctor whispered.

Seven minutes? Of course he was right. I was brain dead, just the ears sending data to a computer that had been severed from the world. As much as I wanted to cry, I knew it wouldn't help. Dead is dead. They might keep my body alive, but only because organs were needed for surgery. I just wanted them to leave me alone. Let me get on with dying.

"How is she?" A woman's voice, a soft alto I had never heard before. Cold and imperious.

"She was anoxic for seven minutes. She isn't going to come back, General."

"That is not acceptable."

"I don't care if it is acceptable to you or not!" He snapped. "This woman has more guts than everyone on this damn ship, and I don't like to have to say it, but she's gone."

Maybe if I opened my eyes, I could at least see who was arguing. Maybe they would leave me in peace if I did. But my lids weighed tons. They kept arguing, screaming at each other like fishwives. Just shut up!

"What?" The woman sounded astonished.

"Gen-"

"Hush!" She demanded.

You want him to shut up, but you won't listen to me? I thought.

"She's there. Somehow, she is still there." I felt something, and after a moment, knew it was a hand on my cheek. Then that voice, so much more tender than before spoke in my ear. "I won't let them turn it off, girl. I owe you too much." I felt the hand move to my forehead. "Sleep and get well."

I felt as if the ship had hit me, driving me into the bed.


	2. Transfer to the Endar Spire

_Transfer to the Endar Spire_

When I woke up, two days had passed. The med-techs had stuck me in the Bacta tanks, and my few injuries were taken care of. I knew I was still aboard _Ashtree Corona_. That labored sound in the air circulation system sounded exactly the same.

The first tech to see me had almost shrieked in surprise. The doctor came in motioning for me not to move. "Just a few tests. What is your name?"

Name. Everything has a name. Everyone has a name. That's how you know they're talking to you and not someone else. "Danika?" I asked

"No, full name."

I pondered. "Danika Wordweaver."

"Home planet?"

"Deralia."

He nodded. "You might have some problems remembering. You were under a long time, and hypox can't repair neural damage. Don't worry about it."

I wanted to tell him that not remembering would bother anyone, and telling you not to worry about it was stupid, but merely nodded.

Every doctor or med I saw for the next few hours was looking at me in awe. I was treated like a visiting Senator, anything I wanted I could have with a word.

I hated it. While everything was healed, I had trouble breathing, especially when I walked. I had been one of those that set the pace in our morning runs. Right then a newborn baby still crawling would have beaten me.

And I dreamed. Usually my dreams were normal. But these dreams linked together. When I slept, I was where the last dream had left off. They started with Kalendra and I walking home hand in hand. Again, that had never happened. Worst yet, I knew somehow that this wasn't Kalendra.

You must know the feeling. You are out among a crowd, and a face catches your eye. They look like someone you used to know perhaps someone you loved, or knew well. But when you're closer, they don't really look alike. The face isn't even really close when you think about it. The voice is not right. This woman was brunette like Kalendra, a bit shorter than I like her, soft voice with an accent nothing like my brief love.

It wasn't her, but for some reason she acted the same at a lot of points. It bothered me more when she didn't follow the script my memory handed out.

The first night in the pool she had stripped off her robe, but wore a bathing suit. Kalendra and I had been so comfortable together that a suit was superfluous. Yet 'Kalendra' in my dream was nervous. As she had lain back in my arms the real Kalendra had cried. Yet this one just lay against me with shoulders

tense. It took her a long time to really relax.

Did I tell the psyche-techs? Are you out of your mind? Once I was fit again, I would return to a ground unit. Away from what I took to be a gradual madness. But if they thought I was failing to track upstairs, all I would get would be a room with padded walls. No thank you very much.

Padawan Loras came to see me on the second day. She always reminded me of the women that came to hunter meetings with their husbands. A demented bird flying from task to task. That little bit of normality actually made me feel even better.

How are you feeling?"

"Like I died and no one told me." I grumped. I was back to walking normally, but still didn't have the wind to run.

"You did, twice." She replied matter of factly. "You ran out of air, and your heart stopped as they were reeling you in. Then again in the airlock. The doctor was sure you wouldn't come back to full mental capability.

"If it weren't for Bastila, you would have been shipped out with the crippled yesterday. But she said you were still cognizant."

I felt a chill of terror. To wake up in a Republic hospital, everyone sure my mind was gone. Or worse, living there to a ripe old age as a drooling moron or a resource to harvest. "How did she know?"

"We're not quite sure, actually. Well you have two more days of convalescing to do. Does it matter to you where?"

"Why."

"Five of the damaged ships are well enough repaired to return to shipyards. A mobile repair ship has arrived to begin repairing the others. The others are splitting up to try to locate the _Leviathan_. At Bastila's request, you're being transferred to _Endar Spire_."

I considered the option. Did it matter? Not really. "When?"

"As soon as your gear is packed."

She was as good as her word. Less than an hour later, I walked across the gangway onto the _Endar Spire_.

With all of the ships that were damaged or destroyed, every ship was crowded. I was assigned a room I shared with a junior officer. I never met him because he was on Beta-shift, and I was assigned to Delta. We shared the bed, each sleeping when the other was working. In my case, work was sleeping, eating, and going to the gym to work out for the next four days.

My dreams continued. This was the first time in my life I had ever had sequential dreams, though others I had spoken to had mentioned them happening. But I am sure no one had ever lived through such rich and vivid dreams. Kalendra and I practiced with ritual brands, though hers seemed to glow as if it were a light saber. We spent as much time together as we had in real live, running through the fields, walking hand in hand. Hugging as if to chase a chill away. But there were those odd places where dream did not fit reality. Climbing Jumja trees to drop ripe fruit into her hands, something that had not happened because while Jumja would be ripe at this very moment at home, they had been two months away when Kalendra and I spent those halcyon days together.

As it had been in real life, our entire world was each other. There were times when I would be bothered, and when that happened, she would sense it, taking my face in her hands, and kissing my cheek yet again. That kiss would draw me back into the dream.

On the fourth day, I was in the wide wading pool of home, leaned into the tile backing. We had practiced until we were both tired, and it felt good to lay in the water.

"May I join you?" I opened my eyes, and Kalendra was there. She dropped her robe. For a moment, there was a struggle in her eyes, then the suit she had worn joined it. She slid into the liquid, and moved into her favorite spot on my lap. My arms encircled her, and she snuggled with a soft cry of satisfaction.

"I wish we could stay here forever." I whispered.

"You know we cannot." She admonished. "There is much we must do."

I had no idea what she was talking about, but part of me knew exactly what she meant. "I know." I felt saddened. The dreams had become the most exciting part of my recent life. They would have to end.

Then I tensed. Like the time I had reached for my boots and stopped because somehow I had felt the presence of the hook spider in one of them. Something bad was going to happen.

She had sensed it too. We slid apart, unconsciously taking positions of defense. Ahead of me was a nebula I had never seen, and a golden sun. From that sun plunged a Jollo cat. The largest and most ferocious one I had ever seen. I reached for my pistol, but I had forgotten it somehow. Then the cat plunged between us. I could hear Kalendra scream, and a massive paw slammed me down-

_Endar Spire_

I felt the first blast, and was rolling to fall out of bed. I landed on all fours, then shook my head. I was in my quarters on the _Endar Spire_. Beyond the transparisteel of the ports I could see the turbolaser blasts slamming into our shields felt the crump of others as they smashed hull plating instead.

Instinct is a wonderful thing. I had been assigned a footlocker, and scrabbled across the floor to it. My palm opened the lock, and I had just grabbed the familiar grip of a blaster rifle when the hatch popped open.

I spun in place, the skeleton stock against my shoulder, cheek welded to it, eye looking down the sight. I didn't recognize the man, but I did recognize the uniform. Republic Navy. I lifted the gun away from target, and he relaxed.

"Danika? I'm Ensign Trask Ulgo. We share these quarters. We work different shifts, which is why we haven't met."

After those sentences I had him pegged as a willing little clown. Most new minted officers are like that.

"The _Endar Spire _is under attack by a Sith battle fleet. We have to get to the bridge to protect Bastila." I had to count that as stupid observation number 2. I figured he was so newly minted that he thought the crew needed a pep talk, even if he only had one crewperson, and even if we were under attack. I was busy putting on my gear, but he ran off at the mouth anyway.

"One of our primary duties is to guarantee her survival in the event of an enemy attack. You swore an oath just like everyone else on this mission. Now it's time to make good on that oath!"

Where was that power coupling? I dug for it as he continued to run off at the mouth.

"I've heard all about your reputation. Elite combat training, tops in you class. It's no wonder you were handpicked for this mission. Word is, the officers haven't seen a recruit with your potential in twenty years. But all that potential doesn't mean a thing if you can't deliver when it counts!"

I had a disparaging thought; was there a class at the academy on how to write one of these speeches? When I had taken over 2nd squad aboard _Ashtree Corona_, my entire speech was 'Dylan is gone, I'm in charge. Let's do it.'

More to the point, who was he calling a recruit?

"We're-" I held up a hand to silence him. I pointed at the blaster still on his hip. "You know how to use that thing?" The sword didn't sit right between my shoulder blades, and I shifted it.

I actually broke through the prepared speech. "Yeah."

"Then follow me, and if I don't kill it, you do."

"I'm an officer and I'm in charge-"

"How many actual boarding actions you been on, butter-bar?" I asked.

"Uh, two."

"I've lost count. You decide where we're going, then get the hell out of my way so we can get there alive." I went to the hatch, but it didn't open.

"All the compartments are on lock down. But don't worry I have the codes."

I hissed, motioning with the rifle toward the hatch. He slipped past me and punched in a series I immediately memorized. If we got separated, or he bought a charge, I would be able to go on.

The hatch opened. I spun to cover it, but only an astromech droid was in sight. I double-timed down the passageway, and tapped the code I had gotten into it. This one opened into another passageway. Directly ahead, a lone Republic soldier was firing off to my left. I shifted and saw two people in Sith battle armor there.

"These must the advance guard of their boarding party. For the Republic!' Trask leaped out and opened fire.

Really, did any soldier that had seen action say things like that? I charged out with my own muttered battle cry. "Not this crap again!" The two there went down under our fire. My com clicked, and I paused.

"This is Carth Onasi. The Sith are threatening our positions. We can't hold out for long against their firepower. All hands to the bridge!"

"That's Carth! He's one of the Republic's best pilots. He's seen more combat than the rest of the crew combined. If he says things are bad, you'd better believe it. We have to get to the bridge to help defend Bastila."

I dropped, and went through the pouches on the dead Republic trooper. I found a frag grenade and another magazine. "What are you doing?" He almost screamed.

"These weapons don't run on words, Ensign." I slid the grenade in the tube on the front of my outfit, just where it belonged in the first one. As he went up the passageway, I followed. I had caught a glimpse of his insignia before he turned.

What was a medic Psyche specialist doing leading a boarding action?

The next short time was madness as it always is in battle. Panels exploded as energy bled into the electrical system, and the lighting flickered then stabilized at a different level. The enemy were in burnished black and gold, visible only at a distance before our fire took them down. Everywhere were bodies. Our own crewmen, Sith. A number of hatches headed aft were fused. Anyone back there was trapped with no escape, and we didn't have time to save them. Along the way I madly collected grenades, a long sword and a suit of combat armor.

We reached deck four dead aft of the bridge. There was a door leading into the bridge, through an adjacent passageway. But it was locked. I motioned, and Trask moved up. He fiddled, cursing, then the door opened. We looked into an anteroom a hell.

Two people were facing off. One was a Dark Jedi in armor. The other- My heart leaped in pain. Padawan Loras faced off against him, her face set in grim determination. The chubby ever-cheerful woman I had known for months was gone. Instead she was a warrior goddess, and the man facing her was being pushed back by her attack. He was taller broader more muscular yet even I knew he never stood a chance. She spun, blade flashing past him, and he fell in pieces. She barely had enough time to recognize his death when a panel behind her exploded, shredding her.

We charged toward her, just as a pair of Sith came around the corner. I tucked and rolled, coming up on my knees, my rifle already aiming. His first shot went over my head. Mine punched through his faceplate and through the back of his head. Directly ahead of us was the secondary bridge access. But the door refused to budge. I motioned, and we ran down the passageway to the main bridge entrance.

I drew the long sword, and motioned for him to do the same. The hatch slammed up and I was cutting at the Sith I didn't even see. He screamed, and I was past attacking his partner as Trask charged him as well. He went down, and Trask and I looked around frantically. Nothing lived on the bridge but us.

He went to a panel, and brought up a screen. "All of the portside pods are either damaged or away. That leaves starboard." He pointed off to our right. I ran around the corner, and the hatch opened. We stepped through, and the hatch beyond started to open. Beyond it...

A dark Jedi

I know Jedi are supposed to be able to detect each other and their enemy by feeling the force, though no one had ever explained it to me. At that moment, I understood because I could almost feel the black evil miasma in that figure.

He stood there, grinning as if he were a child that had surprised us with a clever trick.

Trask pushed me toward the hatch leading to the starboard escape deck. "Run I'll hold him as long as I can!" Before I understood what he was doing, he leaped through, and his blaster exploded into the control panel on that side. The hatch slammed shut, trapping him with the dark Jedi.

I pounded on the hatch, screaming. I wanted him there so I could slap him and scream in his face. I was the soldier, it was my job to fight and die saving the others. Not some jumped up med student with a gold bar and delusions of grandeur! At least I could make sure his sacrifice was worth something. I opened the hatch leading to the starboard escape deck.

The passageways were empty no-

"This is Carth Onasi to Republican crewman in the Starboard Escape deck; I am tracking your position through the Endar Spire's life support system.

"Bastila's escape pod is away. According to the sensors, you're the last survivor I can see. I can't wait for you much longer. You have to get to the escape pods!"

"Right." I whispered.

I came around a corner, and my rifle was tracking before I even knew why. The Sith armored trooper saw me, but he was a lifetime too late. I ran past his body, checking my map. Turn left, fifteen meters, a door- I looked up, skidding to a stop as I thumbed the rifle to auto fire. The two troopers there had heard me and were turning, but the 'room broom' as we called a blaster on auto fire tumbled them both over. By the hand of one man I saw a vibroblade and picked it up. Better than the alloy weave long sword I had. I hit the control and the hatch popped open.

Carth Onasi was tall, dark, and about ten years older than I was. He shut down the computer, and waved. "You made it just in time. There's only one escape pod left. Come on! We can hide out on the planet below."

"But-"

"Bastila's away, and there's no reason for us to stick around and let the Sith blow holes in us." I must have still hesitated because his face hardened. "Come on! There's time for questions later!"

I shrugged and moved past him. The pod lay open, and I had a sudden feeling that I was looking at my grave. Then I leaped in.

Carth was on my heels, hitting the release as he did.

Neither of us was strapped in, and the jolt of launching slammed us into the bulkhead. I could see the planet, a steel blue ball coming toward us, then something slammed into the hull of the pod. Probably, I figured out later, bleed off from a near miss. It was strong enough to pick me up and slam me into the bulkhead again. That was the last thing I remembered.

Taris

_She looked sort of like Kalendra might have as an adult. Tall, dark haired, brown eyes, but Kalendra had never had such a cold and efficient look about her. The woman held a lightsaber, yellow beam clashing with the red of her opponent. Like Padawan Loras the last time I saw her alive, this woman was master of this battle, an outside observer could see it in her movements, the reactions of her opponent. He would lose; it was just a matter of when. She stood for a moment, and I knew she was using another power, and at the same time taunting him with the ease in which she did so._

I felt as if I'd rolled down a mountain without a suit to protect me. I sat up, and my head pounded even harder.

"Good to see you up instead of thrashing around in your sleep." I looked toward the voice. A man, wait- Carth Onasi from the ship. He handed me a mug and I sipped the tea gratefully. We were in a room, and I scanned it as I drank. Once it was probably nice. A comfortable place to live. Now it was run down, as if the owner no longer cared. There was a workbench off to one side. I took the plate of sandwiches he handed me, and began to stuff my face. I was ravenous.

"You must have had one hell of a nightmare. I was wondering if you were ever going to wake up." I finished the sandwich in my hand, grabbed another, and motioned for him to continue.

"I'm Carth. One of the Republic solders from the _Endar Spire_." He watched my face. "I was with you in the escape pod. Do you remember?"

I nodded. "I had a strange dream." I kept seeing it in my head. Almost like the dreams I had of Kalendra and I that weren't real. "Like a," I searched for a way to explain it better. "A vision or something."

He shrugged. "Well, you've been slipping in and out of consciousness for a couple of days now, so I imagine you're pretty confused about things. Try not to worry. We're safe." He looked grim. "At least for the moment."

He waved at the surroundings. "We're in an abandoned apartment on the planet Taris. You were banged up pretty bad when our pod crashed, but luckily I wasn't seriously hurt. I was able to drag you away from our crash site in all the confusion, and I stumbled onto this place. By the time the Sith arrived on the scene, we were long gone."

I thought of waking up in Sith hands, and I felt my blood run cold. "I guess I owe you my life." I looked up at him. "Thanks."

He brushed it off with a tinge of embarrassment. "You don't have to thank me. I've never abandoned anyone on a mission, and I'm not about to start now. Besides, I'm going to need your help."

I must have looked quizzical, because he waved toward the door. "Taris is under Sith control. Their fleet is orbiting the planet, they've declared martial law and they've imposed a planet wide quarantine. But I've seen worse spots."

That didn't make sense. The fleet should be out pounding ours, not sitting overhead. Why was it still here?

"I saw in your service records that you understand a remarkable number of alien languages. That's pretty rare in a raw recruit, but it should come in handy while we're stranded on a foreign world."

I felt a surge of irritation. After all the battles I had seen, some desk jockey still had me down as a raw recruit? The more I heard, the more I wanted to see these service records of mine for myself.

Carth hadn't noticed that second of inattention. "There's no way the Republic will be able to get anyone through the Sith blockade to help us. If we're going to find Bastila and get off this planet, we can't rely on anybody but ourselves."

I hadn't answered, and he began to look worried again. Or maybe he was wondering how far and fast the 'green kid' would run? "Bastila. She's the one from the _Endar Spire_, right?"

That statement reassured him. "That smack on the head did more damage than I thought. Bastila's a Jedi. She was with the strike team that killed Darth Revan, Malak's Sith master.

"Bastila in the key to the whole Republic war effort. The Sith must have found out she was on the _Endar Spire _and set an ambush for us in this system.

"A lot of the pods were caught by the Sith, or destroyed. But I believe Bastila was on one of the escape pods that crashed here on Taris. For the sake of the Republic war effort, we have to try and find her."

At least the constant pep talks I was getting from everyone made sense now. They all thought I was green. But what he said made sense. The Sith would have lifted the blockade if Bastila was known dead. There was no need to stop a few scattered Republic grunts. Martial law and controlling access from the ground would do that.

I rubbed my head. I still ached, and my mind was running in circles at hyper drive. I firmly told myself that a headache would have to wait. That not knowing what to do could stand in line with it. Action always made me focus.

"Any idea where we should start looking?"

He nodded, glad that I was tracking again. "While you were out of it I did some scouting around. There are reports of a couple escape pods crashing into the Undercity. That is probably a good place to start. But the Undercity is supposed to be a dangerous place. We don't want to go in there unprepared. It won't do Bastila any good if we go and get ourselves killed."

"I don't think we'd like it much either."

He stifled a laugh at that. "The sooner we start looking for Bastila, the sooner we find her. Let's go."

"Good idea. We can use this abandoned apartment as our base. Most of the shops look to be open still, and we can probably pick up some equipment and supplies here on the upper level. Just remember to keep a low profile." He looked grim. "I've heard some grim stories about the Dark Jedi interrogation techniques. They say the force can do terrible things to a mind. It can wipe away your memories and destroy your very identity."

I had heard the same thing, seen people we rescued after the fact. But the chill of his words went even deeper. Like I had suddenly stepped through an airlock into deep space without a suit.

Again he didn't notice. First he brought up his computer map, and laid out the problem. It sounded simple, but the problem was literally global.

Taris was a really beautiful place way back when. They had just found half a dozen warp corridors leading from there to the rim about four and a half centuries ago. Entrepreneurs had spent a lot of money building a showcase city to rival Coruscant. The City of Taris covered just about the entire main continent. High-speed trams linked everywhere to everywhere else. But those plans had taken bizarre twists as time went on. Instead of razing sections of the city to rebuild them, they had merely built up from there like a coral reef. When the boom had collapsed fifty years ago, it had hit the planet hard. While still a tourist destination, it wasn't much more since then. The people had become rigidly stratified in their outlook, and the rich on top had dealt with those below them on the social ladder by shoving them down into the lower city. Worse yet, there had been a brief revolution, and the survivors of that had been shoved even farther, down into the depths. That was called the Undercity.

If you expected bright lights, enjoyment, and reasonable food, the upper city was where you lived. But below that? I would have said chaos reigned, but no one did. The lower city was a war zone divided up by the gangs. Traveling anywhere unless you used a tram was dangerous. Few if any places down there were even on the system anymore.

The Undercity was worse. There was only one way open to that level, and it led from an area fought over by two of the larger gangs. It was only open for access when sewers broke down. The technicians went under armed guard even in the best of times.

Taris was a pearl, with layers of beauty, and inside the filth that began it all.

I asked questions, and began to see some respect in his eyes. We knew where the access to the Lowercity was closest to our destination, and had a rough idea of where the pods had crashed. We could pick up our search there.

"-But I figure if don't do anything stupid we should be okay. I mean, after all, they're looking for Bastila, not a couple of grunts like us."

I stood, checking my gear. We were going to start getting overloaded soon, but I wasn't worried yet. The vibroblade I had picked up from the Sith squad leader intrigued me. I checked the pommel and saw that it disassembled. Most don't; they're sealed factory units. I walked over to the workbench, and using the tools, opened the grip. Ah, the vibration cell was an older model. I went through the detritus I had picked up in the mad scramble from the ship, and found a newer model.

I could feel Carth standing behind me. "What are you doing?" He asked.

"The older vibration cells were permanently set. The vibratory level was constant. That's all well and good but you have different cutting rates for different things." I shrugged. "The newer cells are adjustable. You can set them for the specific material, and they cut more smoothly. The next best thing to a lightsaber in close combat. Great for boarding actions, because you can dial it to whatever you're cutting."

I finished connecting it, then switched the blade on. The newer units also ran at a pitch that didn't jar the teeth, something that had always bothered me. That narrow blade would slice through metal or flesh as if it were butter. With the new vibration cell, it would cut through either at the same rate as long as I preset it first. I shut it down, holstering it.

He was grinning at me. For an older man he was quite handsome when he smiled. "I stand corrected. Whatever you are, you're not a raw recruit." His voice changed. "All right, soldier! Let's move out!"

Apartments

There is an old military maxim that says, 'If it can go wrong, it will'. We ran smack into it as we exited the apartment. The problem with the apartments in the South city where we were was that when aliens had come to Taris, they had created their own slums, and we were in one of them.

A man in Sith uniform flanked by a pair of battle droids was harassing a pair of Duros. I could tell from the expressions on the alien faces that this wasn't new. One of the Duros complained.

The Sith merely drew his sidearm, and shot the protester.

I had imagined what a battle droid might think when it was told to attack. I was sure what I went through next was probably as close as a flesh and blood entity could get. I was totally focused on the man as he holstered his weapon. I was measuring the distance to him, and my hand had already found the hilt of the vibroblade. It felt right somehow to have a blade instead of a gun. Something deep inside of me snarled. I had always hated bullies.

He sneered at the aliens, then turned slightly. When he did, he saw Carth. He didn't flinch. I give him that much. His eyes moved farther, and he saw me. "Hey, what's this, humans hiding out with aliens? They're Republic fugitives! Attack!"

I was moving even before he had shouted the command. The blade hummed as he drew his sidearm. If he had not holstered it, he might have had a chance. I sliced upward, and the blaster along with half his arm went with it. He screamed. I was too close for the droid's targeting sensors to separate me from him, and I used it, cutting to my left shattering the torso of that droid. I could hear blaster fire, and as I spun back to my first victim, he was staring at the wreckage Carth had made of the other droid. He saw my blade come up, and screamed 'Please-" before I cut down, killing him.

We were frozen in the tableau for a moment. I was getting a handle on my fury. I wanted to chop the dead man into fish bait. But I knew it was just my anger talking. That scream for mercy really irritated me. Most bullies I had dealt with were the kind that would laugh at your pleas, but expect you to honor theirs. I touched the stud, and the sword hummed to silence. The Duros stared at me with a mixture of terror and awe on his face. "Are you all right?"

The Duros nodded kneeling by his friend. Nothing would have saved his life at this point. "Poor Ixgil. He should never have talked back to that Sith. Thankfully, you were here to step in and help us, human This isn't the first time the Sith have come in here to cause trouble for us. Hopefully it will be the last."

I stared at him with amazement. We had a pair of bodies rapidly making a mess and he had hope still? "Won't someone come searching for this patrol?"

He shrugged fatalistically. "Don't worry about the bodies. I will move them so that if looks like they were killed elsewhere. That should throw the Sith off the track. With any luck they won't be bothering us again for a while."

I knelt, taking the equipment off the dead Sith. More grenades. I slotted them.

"Where did you learn that?" Carth asked.

"What, the sword? At home."

"No. How to roll your victim afterward."

I chuckled. "A pilot usually doesn't see much close range combat. When you're a grunt, you learn the fine art of conservation. A dead man doesn't need weapons. You can use them. So he gives you what you need to complete the mission." I nodded toward the blaster he still held. "For an old man, you're pretty good with that thing."

"Years of practice." He smiled sadly. "Besides, if they're close enough to hit me with a sword, I'm not doing my job."

I shrugged at that. If they were close enough to hit me with a sword and I was still alive, I _had_ been doing my job. I pocketed the few credits the dead man had, and hefted his rifle.

"How many rifles do you need?" He asked plaintively.

"I can carry it until we sell it. After all," I pulled out my Republic ID card. "We try to run one of these through a kiosk, and we'll have Sith all over us."

He shrugged, grinning sheepishly. "All right, I forgot."

We walked down the hall. A Twi-lek was watching as we approached, and he spoke. "Well I don't see too many of your kind around here. Most of the residents of these rundown old apartments are illegal aliens. I'm Larrim, by the way." I instantly pegged him as a salesman. When it comes to a glad-handing salesman, the only thing worse than Twi-leks are humans and Hutt. He proved me right when he looked around as if he expected the constable to be standing right there.

"You might be interested to know that I have for sale." He motioned toward a section of the wall where he'd set up a display. "You want to see what I have in stock? I know my kiosk isn't much to look at, but my prices are reasonable, and the merchandise is sound."

I looked at what he had. Recorders, music cubes, a few specialty spices for other aliens species. "I don't see much really,"

He grinned, showing the pointed teeth of an adult Twi-lek. "No problem, just step up and have a peek." He reached down, and lifted. The entire upper deck was just for cover. Below it he had a rack of weapons, grenades separated in fruit bins.

I shook my head. "There isn't anything I desperately need right now, but perhaps you're in the mood to buy?"

We haggled, something the Twi-lek love to do. When I was done I had sold the two blaster rifles I had picked up, one of the blaster pistols, all of the adrenal supplements, and I walked away with about five hundred credits. We ended the session with both complaining that they had been ripped off, which meant we were if not pleased, we were at least satisfied that we had gotten the better of the deal.

"Now we can buy supplies if we need them." I said, slipping the plastic coins into my belt. I remembered the map, and began striding down the hall. The building was circular, at least on this level. The aliens that lived in the rooms ignored us. It was better that way for both them and us.

I stopped at the door into the street. "Won't we look out of place with all this hardware?"

Carth grinned. "Girl, you're going to fit right in."

Upper City: South

I saw what he meant when we stepped outside. Among the normal citizens were a lot of people dressed in space suits, combat gear, and attitudes.

The sky was cloudy; in fact the streets were cloudy. The building on Taris reach up in some areas almost four kilometers. Only the streets are required to be below 3500. That isn't hubris, its simple survival. Above 3500 meters the air pressure on the average planet is too low to support un-adapted human life. As it was, someone who had spent their life at sea level would have been gasping up here.

"I said blockade and I meant it. Maybe fifty, sixty ships were caught on the ground or in orbit. Anything that could land was landed and have guards posted on them. Those that couldn't land because of their design were allowed caretaker crews, but locked down with explosives linked to their drive systems and battle droids to make sure no one tries to disconnect them." He pointed at a shuttle taking off. "The only surface to space shuttles allowed have Sith crews. You can go up to your ship, but you can't stay there. Besides, there's one of the _Interdictor _class cruisers in orbit, and a dozen smaller ships. Anything that tries to take off or break orbit gets blown to atoms.

"But ships sitting in dock mean crews on the street. Let's just say the Oligarchs aren't happy with that." He motioned to the side. The pod we had crashed in was right there, and I winced at the damage. I didn't know it had been that close. Droids were circling it, dismantling the pod for any usable scrap.

I mentally brought up the map of the section of the city we were in. It was called, with fine attention to new names, merely South City. We were on one of the main promenades, where the local citizens liked to walk along and show their finery. The tube station to North City, where the entrance to the Lower city was. I located the important places we might need to go as we walked toward the tube station. There was a weapons shop directly across the promenade, with a cantina down another smaller promenade. At the other end of it past the shops and air-car pads were a medical facility, and the tube station.

"I think we should reconnoiter before we load up on ordinance." I said. I had a blaster rifle, the vibroblade, and about a half-dozen grenades. We were set for anything but a major fight, and if we ran into that, things were already in the crapper.

"Agreed." We strolled. We weren't horrible nasty Republic troops. We were neutrals just stuck here. The local citizens glared at or ignored us. Sith troops in armor stalked the promenade, avoided by pretty much everyone. There were a few aliens, but they scurried from place to place as if terrified. Seeing a Tarisian spit at one, I understood their worry.

We had reached the tube station when it happened. An old man was walking furtively toward the station when two people suddenly stopped him, shoving him toward one of the edges of the promenade. By his dress I figured he was a lower to middle level merchant.

"Davik says you missed your last payment." The human of the pair said.

"Davik doesn't like you missing payments." The Aqualish with him added.

The man looked from one face to the other, then fumbled at his belt pouch. "Here, I've got fifty credits. That should buy me some time, right?"

The human shook his head. "Sorry, you're all out of time. Now it's all or nothing."

"Davik can't have people not paying their debts." The Aqualish said helpfully.

"But I don't have that much! How can I give you credits I don't have?" The merchant whined.

"That's too bad. Davik already gave us instructions. He wants to make an example of you. Come with us." He caught the man by the arm; his associate took the other. They started toward the edge of the promenade. The Aqualish reached out, and touched a pad that had been connected to the safety field. It hissed, and wind pummeled us.

The merchant realized that time was one thing he didn't have. "No! Help! Somebody help! They're going to kill me!"

The few people walking by ignored him. As it had in the apartment complex, my mind focused tightly. I started forward. Carth caught my arm, but I shrugged him off. I drew the vibroblade keeping it turned off tight against my leg as I walked straight toward them.

The human noticed my approach, and was actually happy for the audience. "Hold on a second. Looks like we got a witness here!"

"Davik doesn't like witnesses." The Aqualish just had to say something.

"Leave this man alone or you'll deal with me." I said softly.

The tough looked happy. The man he was about to kill hadn't been enough entertainment for him. "Guess we'll just have to teach you to mind your own business."

He started to grab my arm, and choked as I rammed the vibroblade into his stomach and cut upward. The blade hissed from him, and I spun, chopping into the chest of the second tough before he even knew a fight had started. I flicked the blood that had adhered aside, then shut off the cell, and slowly sheathed the blade.

The merchant just stood there staring at me. He looked down at the corpses and realized that he was going to live at least a little longer. "Thank you! I owe you my life! My wife warned me not to take a loan from Davik. Now I can't pay him back. It's not good to owe a crime lord money. He'll just keep sending bounty hunters after me until I'm dead."

I understood how he felt, but his effusive thanks was starting to wear. "Maybe I can help you."

He shook his head sadly. "You already helped me by saving my life from them. I don't have the money to hire you to protect me. If I did, I would have already paid Davik off. So unless you have a spare hundred credits to give me so I can pay off Davik, there's nothing else you can do." At the last, his tone was ironic. 100 credits is a weeks pay for most people.

I reached into my pouch. We didn't have a lot, but I pictured this man trying to whine his way through a blaster bolt. I pulled enough coins to cover what he asked for, and dropped them into his hand. "Here, take them."

He stared at the money as if he thought it would vanish. Then he looked at me now not only with awe, but astonishment. "You're giving me a hundred credits? Just like that? I don't know what to say! Thank you, Thank you!"

Carth shook his head. "You're giving him a hundred credits? Generous." I could tell his tone was sarcastic, but he'd probably never been on the ragged edge of poverty before.

The merchant was running off at the mouth. "Now I can pay off Davik. You've saved my life! I had better take this to him right away!"

"One word of advice." I said. "Your wife sounds like a smart woman. Next time I'd listen to her." He nodded, and hurried off.

"What about these guys?" He motioned toward the bodies. I flipped over the Aqualish, and went through his pouch, and then I caught his legs, and flipped him over the edge into space. Carth stared at me as I did the same with the human.

"What guys?" I asked resetting the safety field. I looked past him. A pair of Sith were walking toward us. "Now unless you want to explain to the occupiers how all this blood ended up on the ground, I suggest we decide to get a check up." I hooked a thumb toward the medical center across the way.

As we walked, I held out my hand. "No good deed goes un-rewarded." The money I had taken off the two was exactly 100 credits.

The medical treatment center was small. After all with modern medicine you don't need massive structures for something as simple as a clinic. There was a man near the door, but he snarled, pointing us toward the rear. A tall bald man was working on a child. I admired his skill. A two-year-old is sometimes the worse patient. In pain, probably barely old enough to talk. This child just watched him with trusting eyes as the med tech sprayed the burns on his arms.

"Now what have I told you about this?" He asked. "You can't scratch these, it will cause scars. You don't want scars do you?" The child stared wide-eyed, and shook his head. "Then I won't have to use the bad spray." He turned, checking a scanner, and turned back to the boy's arm.

"What zit doo?" The child asked.

"The bad spray?" The child nodded. The med looked around, saw my attention, and winked slowly with one impassive eye. "Well if you use it on boys, they turn into girls if they scratch. But it's worse for girls. They turn into little boys!"

"Oooh!" Behind the child his mother shook her head in exasperation, but she was smiling.

"Look for a back door if we need it." I whispered. Carth nodded, and moved toward the back of the open room.

Finished with his patient, the med tech turned to me. "I see from your appearance that you are an out-worlder. Still you are welcome here. I'll not have it said that Zelka Forn refused to help somebody just because they're not a citizen of Taris. Do you require medical treatment? I can treat almost any injury or ailment right here, except for the Rakghoul disease."

Carth walked up behind him. "Actually, I have a question." He said. He was furious about something, but I didn't know what. Forn looked confused, but followed him to a personnel door in the larger door at the back. Carth opened it.

"What are you doing! Don't go in there! That is for medical personnel only!" Carth grabbed the protesting man and shoved him into the back. I followed into horror.

Bacta tanks dozens of them. People, some horribly mangled occupied five. I stared, then approached one of the tanks. I had seen the man before. Suddenly the face clicked in my mind. "I recognize him." I looked at another face. I recognized all of them. "They're Republic soldiers!"

"You recognize them?" Forn looked from my face to Carth's "But how! Unless... you're friends of the Republic?"

I touched the transparisteel of the tank. "We are friends of the Republic. You can trust us."

Forn sighed. "I guess... I guess I had better tell you what's going on. I only hope the Sith don't find out what I've done." He sat in a chair, rubbing his face with his hands, staring sadly at the occupied tanks. "Since the space battle overhead, people have been secretly bringing in these Republic soldiers who crash-landed on this planet. I had to take them in, what other choice did I have?

"Their injuries are terrible. Even with everything I can do most won't survive. But at least I can make their last days more comfortable. And at least they are hidden from the Sith."

I looked at this man, and saw the inherent bravery of his act. The Sith wouldn't care that his act was strictly humanitarian. They would see someone that had hidden possibly valuable interrogation assets from them. If he was lucky, all they would do is kill him.

Carth was embarrassed by his original suspicions. "Well for what you have done you have my thanks. It's good to know that at least some of these men ended up in compassionate hands."

Forn looked sad. "I shudder to think what the Sith would do if they discovered these soldiers here. But since their initial questioning, they haven't returned. So it may be that my fears are unfounded."

"Is there anything we can do to help?" I asked softly.

Forn shook his head with a sad smile. "I am afraid there is nothing more anyone can do for them. If you'll excuse me, I should return to the front in case someone comes in needing treatment."

I leaned my head against one of the tanks. The woman inside it had been one of those nurses that bothered me so much. The last time I saw her I had screamed at her to let me just exercise, and she had left with a pained expression. "I'm sorry for what I said." I whispered to her. "Sorry for everything I might have done."


	3. Taris 1

Carth

The more I watched her, the less made sense. I had read Danika's service record because she was brought aboard the _Endar Spire _at the last minute. Anyone considered that important by a Jedi tweaks the interest. She was from a frontier world, 24 years old, and according to her records, she had just finished boot camp.

Fine.

But she was just too good at what she did. The vibroblade didn't set off the alarms in my head. After all a lot of the new kids make pretty good jackleg mechanics. The fact that she checked her weapons automatically didn't either. You'd expect a new boot to pay attention to those kind of details.

But when we had confronted the Sith patrol in the apartments, it started to make less sense. She reacted even before the attack order was given.

How many new boots remember that a droid's targeting sensors will hitch if you put a friendly in the line of fire? If there had been only the two droids, they would have both opened fire, because a droid is programmed that way. But there's an implant they give flesh and blood people if you're working with droids. That limits friendly fire incidents. If an enemy and a friendly living being are in close proximity, the droid will have to find someplace to shoot that won't injure the friendly. So she first disarmed him literally, and then took out the droids while they were still in that programming loop. I have seen _veterans_ that don't consider that when they're in a close in melee.

Then it was her take charge attitude. Most boots will follow orders from on high slavishly, as if afraid that they will be punished. She argued! That was the sign of a veteran.

Now I watched her leaning into the tank. I recognized the nurse, but wasn't sure why she bothered Danika so much. She was suddenly that little girl the records said she was. There were two people in there, and I wasn't sure which was which.

We stepped back into the med center, and she walked toward the tech. I followed mainly to find out what she was planning next.

Forn was working on another patient.

"Could I ask you some questions?" She asked.

Forn nodded intent on debriding a nasty rip in a man's arm.

"Tell me about the Rakghoul disease."

Even as he worked, Forn talked. If he didn't live on Taris, I could see him in charge of a teaching medical center. "The terrible affliction has plagued Taris for many generations now. It is spread by what are called Rakghouls. They are horrible monsters that live in the Undercity below Taris' great skyscrapers.

"Prolonged exposure to the Undercity breeds the disease and those infected will eventually mutate into Rakghouls themselves, becoming mindless beasts that feed on the flesh of others."

She nodded. "Is there no cure?"

"There is no known cure for the disease, though the Republic base here had a research wing dedicated to it. The scientists that were working at the base were supposed to be close to a cure, but before they could release it, the Sith arrived.

"The Sith overran the base, and now refuse anyone access to the research wing, or any laboratory inside. If there is or was a cure, the Sith are keeping it to themselves. Their patrols have been hit rather heavily in the Undercity, and any serum they might have is for those patrols."

Forn nodded to the patient who left, and looked to Danika. "If I could just get my hands on a sample of that serum, the Rakghoul disease could be wiped from the face of Taris forever. Though I don't see that happening."

Danika considered, and I could almost see her mind running at top speed. "Maybe we could find a way to get my hands on that serum for you."

"I don't see how. The only samples would be in the base, or with the patrols. Getting it from the base would be suicide. There are a lot of guards there.

"I suppose a patrol in the Undercity might have sample, if they haven't already been attacked and used it. Getting it from a Sith patrol would cause repercussions I hate to even think about. I'm sure they wouldn't just hand it over if asked politely."

She thanked him absently, then moved to the door. She motioned me over, and we looked across the promenade. The Sith patrol had left; only a cleaning droid remained.

"I think we will need more weapons." She commented softly. "Weapons

shop first, if that is all right."

` I shrugged. So far she hadn't put a foot wrong.

"Psst." I looked at the assistant that had ignored us when we first entered. I didn't like the look of him. "You there. Wait a minute." He moved over closer, close enough to whisper. "I need to talk to you about that Rakghoul serum. I've got an offer you might want to hear."

Danika looked at him. I could see that she had already decided that we'd get it if we could. "An offer? What are you talking about?"

"Zelka isn't the only one who wants to get his hands on that serum. Davik Kang will pay you ten times what Zelka can if you get the cure for him first."

Davik. That was the crime lord. I tensed. I hated people that put money before necessity. Danika's face was impassive. I didn't know what she was thinking. "Why do you care who gets the serum first?"

"Look, Zelka can't afford to pay me much. If you get the serum for him, I don't get anything extra out of it. But if you sold the serum to Davik, I'd be able to get a finder's fee for directing you to him."

Danika nodded at that, and my heart sank. "Why does Davik want the cure so badly?" As if I didn't already know.

"Davik's interested in anything that can turn a profit." The assistant admitted. "He could make a fortune selling the serum to anyone infected with the disease. Not like Zelka, who'll practically give it away."

Danika's head cocked. "I think I'd rather give it to Zelka. He'll use it to help people."

The man waved his hands in a negative motion. "Helping people is all well and good. But you have to help yourself first, right? I'm telling you Davik will pay big credits for the cure. More than Zelka could."

"And then only the rich would be able to buy the cure." I rasped. She wasn't falling for the guy's patter. "Just let the poor suffer. Right."

Danika looked back toward the med tech who was already busy treating another patient. "What if I told Zelka you're really working for Davik?"

"I'll just deny it. Who's he going to believe, me, or some down on their luck space bum? Besides," He hooked a thumb toward the back room. "What do you think the Sith would pay me for _that_ secret?" He ignored the cold look that ran over Danika's face. "Now be smart about this. You'll get a better deal with Davik, and other people won't get hurt. Understood?"

She nodded, and walked out. I had known her long enough to read the anger in her walk. People ahead of her, even a couple of Sith troopers stepped aside as she stormed down the promenade.

The sign at the weapons shop read 'Equipment Emporium Kebla Yurt Prop.'

Danika walked in like she owned the place. Yurt was a short intense black woman. She saw us and immediately headed over. "Hello there, haven't seen you in my shop before. Allow me to introduce myself, Kebla Yurt, welcome to the Equipment Emporium. You looking to buy some supplies? My shop is the largest in all of Upper Taris. Best selection on the planet. Whatever you need, I got." She grimaced. "Well, mostly."

"Mostly?" I asked. "What do you mean by that?"

She waved at the prints on her walls. Sleek fighters, swoop bikes modified for combat, a Heulin Particle blaster that would shred a ship's hull. "The Sith confiscated all of my heavy weapons. And they impounded my ships and bikes. But I still have a real nice selection of lighter weapons if you're interested."

Danika hadn't even been listening to the spiel. Instead she stood at a transparisteel case, running her hand over it. Inside was an Echani ritual Brand.

I'd seen the Echani in combat, and the ones you feared most were those bearing a ritual brand. They were what the Echani called 'married to the blade'. I had yet so see anyone who wasn't Echani use one.

"You like that?"

"Where did you get it?" Danika asked.

"About a month ago, an Echani Merc down on his luck asked me to buy it, and promised to come back for it." She grimaced again. "But he tried to make money fast by entering the Dueling circuit. He reached the top, and instead of cashing in his chips, he tried for the big score. Bendak Starkiller." She shrugged. "He only accepts death matches. The Echani wasn't good enough." She sensed a possible sale. "I have the equipment to adjust the length." She looked Danika over. "Though I don't know if we'll need it."

She opened the case. Two meters of blade and grip were passed to Danika. She motioned Yurt away, then began to move them as if she'd been born with them in her hands. Yurt whistled appreciatively. "If nothing else, I have got to get a cube of you sword dancing."

"I'll take it."

"Just so you know, all prices are final. No bargaining. I run a high-class establishment and even the used equipment is brought up to factory specs before I put them out. This isn't a Hutt or Twi-lek establishment."

She named a price, and Danika paid it. She folded the blades with a flick of the wrist, and slid them into the sheath that Yurt supplied.

She was becoming more of an enigma. In fact, she reminded me of Morgana, my late wife.

UpperCity

Danika

As we walked toward the tram station, I could see Carth was bothered by something. "Carth?" He looked up, then flushed as if he were embarrassed. "Since we're going to be spending a lot of time together, why not tell me about yourself."

"Me? Well I'm a star pilot. I've been in uniform for a long time. I've seen more than my share of warfare. I fought through half of the Mandalorian campaigns."

I nodded. The Mandalorian was had begun not long after the Exar Kun War. The Republic had been staggering after that war, and the Mandalorians, who had started as our enemies, then had been our allies during them sensed that we were weak.

The Mandalorians aren't a race, they are humans. About twenty centuries ago they had gone to several frontier planets to found a nation based on strength and honor. The planets they had chosen were all either harsh environments, or high gravity, and if possible, both. They had rejected half of the medical technology of that time, practicing a ruthless eugenics program on themselves using both genetic manipulation and simple breeding programs. Children judged too weak to survive were euthanized, their schools were boot camp for children. An adult couldn't get married if there was a serious genetic defect, unless they were already proven in battle. They had been in the forefront of the war against Exar Kun, and they had blooded their troops well.

But when that war ended, they began minor conquests along the borders of the Republic. There were a lot of systems that went their own way rather than be members, and these soon fell. Then they had struck at our frontiers.

Like always, the Republic moved slowly into war. It lasted 12 years with an astronomical death toll, and it wasn't until the Jedi had gotten into it that the tide had turned. Unfortunately, the Jedi that had led that crushing assault were the ones in charge of the present Sith fleet.

"It sounds terrible."

"It was." He agreed. Then his face grew gaunt. "But with all that I've never experienced anything like the slaughter these Sith animals have unleashed. Not even the Mandalorians at their most desperate were this senseless.

"My home world was one of the first to fall to Malak's fleets. The Sith bombed them into submission and there wasn't a damn thing we could do to stop them."

I could understand the confusion. A fleet you're sure is friendly suddenly unleashing hell. Captains surprised by the attack being swept away before they could resist. That anyone had resisted at all would have been surprising at first. But his tone left so much unsaid. "Somehow, I think you feel it is your fault."

He looked at me as if I had dug a blade into an infected wound. "It shouldn't be my fault! I did everything I could, I followed my orders, did my duty. That shouldn't mean I failed them." He looked even more depressed. "I didn't." He repeated.

"You mean your people."

"Yes! No." He sighed. "That's not what I meant. I mean, I'm sorry. I'm not making much sense am I?

"I know you probably mean well, but I'm not used to discussing my feelings. I'm more used to taking action, keeping my mind focused on the problem in front of me. So let's do that. If you have any more questions, save them for later."

I nodded, and started walking again.

North City

It was a forty-minute ride from the South City to the North City. We debarked, and I checked my map. We were on another promenade. The tram station at one end of it, a droid shop and the elevator to our destination at the other. Past the elevator was the base, now occupied by the Sith. There were more Sith here, and we threaded our way through the people walking along with an aplomb we didn't feel. I saw the guard, and motioned for Carth to let me go ahead of him.

The elevator was guarded, and the Sith waved me to a stop as I approached. "This elevator is off limits. Only Sith patrols and those with the proper authorization are allowed in the lower city."

I staggered a little, as if I had been drinking. "But I heard there's a really lively cantina down there! I wanted to check it out!"

He shook his head. His tone, while still firm, was a bit exasperated. "It's obvious from the way you're dressed that you aren't Sith. So unless you have authorization papers, I suggest you do your drinking up here. Move along."

I shrugged, and staggered back the way I had come.

"You're pretty good at that. Sure you haven't been slipping hooch while I wasn't looking?" Carth was trying to lighten the mood.

"Remnants of a misspent youth." I replied. I told him what the Sith guard had said.

"He doesn't seem too bright, that means he'll follow orders to the letter. We're going to need some kind of disguise to get past him."

A trio of armored Sith had just marched past us, bound for the apartment complex at the other end of the promenade. "You know, I said conversationally. "We won't need papers if we have uniforms. I jerked my chin toward the trio.

"What do you have in mind?" He asked softly.

I grinned manically. "Trust me."

"Famous last words." He whispered.

We followed at a safe distance. They walked into the apartment complex, and we followed. The apartments looked slightly better than the ones we were hiding in, and I didn't see an alien. I heard the clatter of armor from my right, and followed it. At the third door on that side, a Sith stood outside, glaring at anyone who came close. I looked around as the last of the denizens had disappeared, and moved toward him.

He saw our approach, and waved at us. "Just keep moving, nothing to see here."

From inside I heard an angry voice. "Where did you hide those Sith uniforms you stole? Did you sell them to the Tarisian underground? Start talking. I want answers!" To one side a Sith officer in red armor was shoving an Aqualish against the wall.

The Aqualish whined. "I'm just a passerby trapped here by your blockade. I don't know anything about an underground. Or any uniforms."

"Uniforms? What are they talking about?" I asked Carth.

"You're a little too curious for you own good, civilian. Move along before you get your nose chopped off."

Carth leaned toward me, and whispered. "I know all about Sith interrogations, this is going to get bad very fast."

The Sith inside slammed the alien into the wall. "I am sick and tired of your lies, you alien scum! Your ugly mug is all over our security sensor logs from the base. Start talking or I am going to splatter what little brains you have all over the wall!"

"Uh oh. The Commander is starting to lose his temper. It took me an hour to get the blood off my armor the last time." The guard commented to himself.

"Maybe the alien is telling the truth." I said.

"Listen, truth, lie, it doesn't matter to him. Just stay out of this if you value your health."

"I won't just let you kill a defenseless prisoner!" I blurted out. I wasn't talking softly when I did. The Commander spun.

"What was that I heard? You won't 'let' us kill him? How could you stop us?" He looked at the guard. "I think it's time you taught these nosy civilians a lesson. No one interferes with the Sith!"

I drew, and the blades of my new weapon snapped out. Before the guard even knew what I was doing, I cut across his neck at the join between the breastplate and the helmet. He was down and I was running at full speed toward the Sith commander. He started to go for his blaster, then changed his mind and went for his sword instead. But I was there before he could draw.

Instead of cutting him I leaped, punching all of my weight into his chest with my leg. As he went backwards, I used the rebound energy, spinning in air to land facing the third Sith trooper. He skidded, trying to stop, but my blade punched through his breastplate. I spun, but the Sith commander was going down as the Aqualish slammed both meaty fists into his head.

"Thank you human." He said. "The Sith would have killed me. Of that I am certain. I don't know who you are, but I can tell you are no friend to the Sith. Among my people, there is a saying; the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Like you, I hate the Sith and what they bring to this world. That is why I stole those uniforms to give to the Hidden Beks."

"What are you talking about?"

"In the lower city, there are some that will not bow down to that." He motioned toward the Sith bodies. "Swoop gang like the Hidden Beks are gathering resources so that one day they can strike back."

I had to laugh. He wasn't innocent!

"If you wish to strike more blows against the Sith, you must journey to the Lowercity. There you can contact the leader of the Hidden Beks."

"What are they planning?"

"If you wish the answer to that question, you will have to ask Gadon Thek. My only dealings with him have been through gang members with access to the UpperCity."

"Do you still have some uniforms we can get?"

"No. There are ways to send non-living things into the Lowercity without being noticed." He motioned toward a panel on the wall. Of course. The trash receptacles. They fed into the compactors and recyclers far below. "However, you have access to uniforms right here." He motioned toward the bodies.

"Then you had best get out of here."

"I agree. The Sith now know my face. I must go into hiding."

I nodded. Carth had dragged the body from the hall, and we got to work. There was only one clean suit. The others were bloody, or in the case of the commander, leaking brain tissue. I looked at it, then passed it to him.

"Why do I have to be the Sith?" He asked plaintively.

"Because I don't have a size three hat size and size twenty neck like this guy." I said.

He grumbled, but slid into the armor with my help. It wasn't a good fit, but as long as he didn't move his head or start dancing, it should work.

"What about you?" He asked.

I giggled, holding his arm possessively. "Why I found this absolutely _adorable _guard that promised to take me to the cantina in return for some fun afterward!"

He shook his head. "I'm getting too old for this crap."

We strolled down the promenade, and the disguise couldn't have been better. The Sith pretty much ignored us. And since I was with a Sith, the citizens ignored us. We walked down to the elevator station, and the guard there just shook his head. "Another 'patrol' heading into the Lowercity, eh? I've heard it's pretty rough down there. I would be careful if I were you. There's a big gang war heating up. Those maniacs are even taking pot shots at us! It's too bad we don't have the manpower to go down and clean that mess up." He tapped the control, and the elevator opened.

"I'd suggest you not bring your friend back up this way. There are apartments down there where you can have your fun."

Carth mumbled, and moved with me attached like a limpet on his arm. The door closed, and I moved away.

"And we had such a nice romance going." He grumped.

"Sorry. Maybe next time."

Lowercity

The elevator opened onto a hallway. I brought up the map. "Hidden Beks." I murmured.

"What?" Carth asked.

"That's one of the gangs who control this area. The Black Vulkars and the Hidden Beks."

"So if all else fails, we ask them for help?"

"If all else fails." I agreed.

There was a running noise, and I drew. A Togarian wearing a black bandanna with the Vulkar logo on it ran past. I moved toward the edge of the hallway. There were three of them wearing the Black Vulkar Logo

One of them saw us. "We don't want the Sith down here too!" They spread out to come at us. As I watched, one of the Vulkars reached behind his back, and pulled out a white rod. I felt my blood freeze at that. A stun baton. Usually used for riot control or prisons, a stun baton would jolt a man right through his armor. At the normal settings it can knock you down or blast you into unconsciousness.

As he activated it, I heard a whine that drove nails into my ears. He'd overloaded the damn thing! The charge was lethal to anything smaller than a building!

"Take the left!" I shouted, drawing. I charged the one with the baton. Either of the others could cut me, and my armor would stop a lot of the damage. But that baton could kill us even through the armor. The left hand Togarian went down in a welter of blood, and I was there swinging. I caught the Togarian in the arm, and he grabbed for it as my back-swing opened up his stomach. I spun, and he died with my blade in his chest and a blaster bolt in the head at almost the same instant.

There was a scream from down the hall, and we turned. Two more Togarian were there in front of a door, with the Vulkar bandannas.

I palmed a gas grenade. I don't like them because you can't guarantee that someone will be affected or how quickly. But the gas does cut down vision, and all I needed was a few seconds.

I over-handed the grenade at one, charging toward him. Behind me I could hear Carth charging after me.

I was there as the cloud dissipated, and cut into the guy before he recognized the danger. He went down, and Carth took out his partner a moment later.

I gasped, looking at them. Then I ransacked their gear. "Carth, I think you had better get out of that armor. They don't seem to like Sith that much."

"I think you might be right."

"Then I need a command decision."

Carth

Considering our entire relationship seemed to be me running in to keep her alive, that was rich. "A command decision."

"We can try to avoid the Vulkars, but from what I've seen, they're almost insane. We can't guarantee the mission will succeed if we have to watch our step every second."

"Agreed."

"Then I suggest we move the Vulkars from our 'maybe avoid' column to our 'better dead than live' one."

I considered her suggestion. We had heard about both gangs, and at least the Beks weren't blasting everything that moved. "Let's table that until we see what happens when I'm out of this." We tried the door they had guarded, obviously the way into their base, but the security was too good.

We decided to see if the apartment complex across from the elevator would give us a place to stash the armor. We went through the rooms one by one. Unfortunately, the Vulkars had laid claim to these as well. Only one room gave us an option. The room had of all things a footlocker with a manual lock. Those are antiques. There was a gas mine set on it, and I wasn't sure what to do with it. Danika merely smiled, and tossed a piece of trash on it. We evacuated the room until the gas dissipated, then went to the locker.

"You're-" I started to tell her to give it up as a bad job, but she knelt in front of the box. She punched in a code, waited, punched in another code, then another. The box hissed open.

"Who is Elam Mattic?" She asked softly.

"Mattic? There was a ground force commander named Mattic at the start of the Mandalorian War. He retired right after it. Why?"

"This box belonged to Elam Mattic." She looked at the room. It was barely livable. She dipped her hands in and pulled out a set of Republic armor. "I think a change of clothes is in order."

As I changed she went through the rest of the contents. As I was sealing the breastplate on the armor I heard an "Oh, my." I turned to see what was wrong. She drew out a set of Echani fiber armor. "I'm going to change. It's better than this." She touched the armor she wore.

"Go ahead."

"Well," she waved her hand. "Turn around."

"Hey, you didn't turn around when I was changing."

"But I was busy inventorying what was in this box."

I harrumphed, but moved to the door. Actually I wanted to think. She's good with weapons, that might be natural talent, but that box...

Damn it the thing had a Hollywell 7400 lock. I had seen them before, hell I have used them before. Without the proper code, you can't open them. Hollywell guaranteed the value of the contents of a sealed box. The only people good enough to get through their encryption were either techs for the company-

-Or professional thieves.

"Done." She looked good in the armor. Echani armor is made to snug itself against the flesh of the wearer and is made of reactive cloth, over small trauma plates. It moved with the wearer, and stopped almost all impact damage yet was light enough to fold it tight enough to fit in a pack. We put the Sith armor in the box, and she locked it.

Back on the walk, we were undecided which way to go. We started down the hall. Like the upper level, we were far above the ground, about a kilometer I estimated. But nothing else was the same. The hall reeked of urine and trash littered the place. Panels sparked, and the light was haphazard.

We came around a bend, and saw a Rodian standing beside a door marked Jayvar's Cantina. Beyond him, a human stood guard on another door. She wore a Bek bandanna. When we passed by, I could feel her eyes on me, but it wasn't outright hostility. It was the professional paranoia of a sentry on an important gate.

A bit farther we saw more Vulkars. We warily backed up out of sight. "I suggest we get a drink and consider this."

"Sounds good to me."

"Back to the cantina." I ordered. Danika nodded. She was watching carefully.

I didn't think we had enough ammo for this adventure.

Danika

Describing any cantina is like describing a sunset. They are all the same and all different at the same time. The lights are always low, the music a little too loud, and the scent of bodies too close together as well.

Here at least the mix was more like the Republic. Aliens and humans drinking. Maybe not together, or as if they liked one another, but not barred because of race.

We had just entered when a human came from the rear. He was locked on a pair of Rodians, and I stopped Carth. "Bounty Hunter."

He nodded, eyes hard. Because of the massive backlogs in the Republic courts, they allowed bounty hunters. Some were just trying to catch or kill criminals, others saw it as a way to hurt people legally.

I pegged this guy as the second.

One of the Rodians looked around then shouted "Hey little human, why you spend time watching us instead of drinking?"

His friend punched him in the arm. "Watch mouth, Luugo! That Calo Nord!"

Nord stopped about ten meters away. "There's a bounty on your slimy little heads. I've come to collect."

"Over our dead bodies!" Luugo shouted going for his weapon.

It wasn't a shoot out. It was an execution. Nord drew a pair of matched blasters even as the ones he wasn't hunting dived for cover. Four neat precise shots took the Rodians down.

"That's the plan." He commented to their bodies. He took their ID plates, and tossed a credit chip toward the bartender. "For the mess." He said.

We moved toward the bar, and got drinks. I wasn't sure what to have, I had never been much of a drinker, but they had several teas and I ordered one.

"As I see it, the Vulkars are just trying to kill us. That means we may have to contact the Beks." Carth grunted. "And how do we contact the Beks? Will they be any help?"

Before I could answer, I heard a Rodian comment. "Little girl should not be in bar. This no place for little girl. If little girl smart, she runs away home."

I leaned out. Two Rodians with Black Vulkar bandannas were facing a young Twi-lek girl with a Bek bandanna. In deference to her head tentacles or Lekku, she wore it around her waist like a sash.

"Who you calling little, Chuba face?" She answered in Basic. That surprised me, most aliens tend to speak their own language almost as if in defiance of order.

"Little girl need lessons in manners!" The Rodian said, cracking his knuckles.

She held up a hand as if asking for time. "Just a sec boys. Zaalbar, a little help here? I need you to rip some legs off some insects."

There was a growling behind me. My mind translated the noise as, "Mission, I'm busy. They just brought my food!"

"Quit complaining, you can finish eating later. Besides, you need the exercise, so get over here."

I turned, and saw one of the biggest Wookiee I had ever seen. He towered over the bar, and walked toward the confrontation like a landslide. The Rodians took one look, and the one who had been pushing the confrontation stepped back, hands up in a placatory manner. We want no trouble with wookiee! Our problem with you, little girl!"

"You got a problem with me, then you got a problem with big Z. So unless you want to take on my furry friend, I suggest you greenies hop on out of here."

The Rodians backed down. I pointed toward her. "Maybe she can help." I stood, walking toward her. She turned, ready to fight, but calmed down when she saw that I wasn't wearing gang colors. She smiled brightly.

"I don't recognize you, and I know just about everyone in the Lowercity. You must be new down here. That makes big Z and me your official welcoming committee!"

I had to laugh. She was a girl just on the edge of maturity, and the child she had been shown through. "You speak Basic!" I commented.

She waved it off. "That's not so strange. Most aliens can speak Basic, they just prefer their own languages. But I grew up here on Taris, so I just got used to speaking the native language, you know?"

"You showed a lot of guts standing up to those Vulkars, kid. You got a name?" Carth said.

My name's Mission Vao," She bowed theatrically, and this big Wookiee is my best friend Zaalbar." She turned, but Zaalbar had obviously decided that food was important. He was holding his plate with one hand, and shoveling with the other. Mission shook her head, then smiled at us again. "I'd offer to give you a tour, but the streets down here aren't what you would really call safe right now. But if there's anything else I can help with?"

"How did a Wookiee and a Twi-lek end up as best friends?"

"We just kind of fell in together. It ain't easy on your own down here in the Lowercity. People always look for a way to push you around if you let them."

"So we noticed." Carth commented dryly. "Still you're an odd pair."

Mission reached out, and ruffled Zaalbar's fur. He had a long-suffering look I had seen on large dangerous pets before, usually when they have to deal with children. Something about him looked odd. He had a harness like any furry alien who disdains clothes, but something was missing. "When I met Zaalbar, it seemed a good match. I knew we could look out for each other. With my street smarts and his muscles, we make a great team."

"Perhaps you can tell me more about the Lowercity." I steered the conversation.

She brightened up if that was possible. "Well you came to the right person! If you want info on Lower Taris, Davik, the swoop gangs, I even have some juicy stuff on Calo Nord!"

"Tell me about Davik."

"Davik's part of the local crime syndicate. With connections, so I have heard, to the Exchange. But everyone knows that. If it's illegal, or profitable, he has his hand in somehow. But what I did hear was that right before the Blockade came down, he took possession of a J-class ship for his smuggling operations. The _Ebon Hawk_."

"A J class!" Carth looked very interested. "Any idea where he keeps it?"

"If the rumor is true, and he does have a ship, it's locked down at his estates. Anything like that would have been confiscated if the Sith knew about it. But no one goes in there, unless they're with the Exchange, or working for Davik."

"Tell me about this gang war."

"In this area there are only two gangs you have to worry about. The Hidden Beks, and the Black Vulkar. Sometimes we hang out at the Bek's base. Gadon Thek their leader. He's a good guy. Lost his sight a few years ago in a swoop bike accident. But even blind he's one hell of a leader.

"Not like that traitor Brejik! Before he took over the Vulkars, he was Gadon's right hand man. Gadon considered that worthless space slug like his adopted son!"

"Why did Brejik leave?"

"When Gadon was blinded, everyone thought Gadon would step down. Brejik was the favorite for taking over. But Gadon didn't think Brejik was ready for the responsibility. Brejik lost it about three, four years ago. He joined the Vulkars, fought his way to the top, and since then he's been waging a war to wipe the Beks and Gadon off the planet.

"If anyone is to blame for this gang war it's Brejik. It's his orders that have the Vulkars out there shooting at anyone and everyone. The UpperCity couldn't care less, and we're caught in the middle. It's like the entire gang has gone insane."

"And Calo Nord?"

"Calo Nord is one of the most famous bounty hunters in the galaxy. He's killed more people than the Iridian plague! Last week he blew away three Vulkars just because they tried to talk to him!

"He hangs around Zax's bounty office, but he's not looking for work there. The local government set a cap on bounties, and that wouldn't be enough to interest him.

"I figure he's been hired by Davik. The last dozen or so he's killed were on Davik's bad side. But if Davik hired him, it had to be for a big job somewhere else. I figure the instant the blockade goes down, Nord is going to be out of here fast."

I looked at Carth. He shrugged. "Maybe we'll talk to you again, Mission."

"Leaving? Yeah, this dive is boring. No action at all. Hey, Zaalbar, let's go."

Zaalbar looked at his plate. "Mission, I haven't finished eating!"

"Can't you think about anything but your stomach for five minutes! Come on, we'll see if there's anything good at the Bek's base before we go slumming."

Zaalbar upended the plate into his maw, set it on the bar, and followed her out.


	4. Taris 2: Undercity

Carth

A J class! They were built at the Protopri yards on Colrami. They had been designed for customs and armed diplomatic courier work Fast enough to catch anything smaller than a fighter or outrun a larger ship. Armed well enough to fight anything they could catch. Some had slipped into the civilian sector, and they made excellent smugglers for the same reason they made good pirate chasers. But we would still have to get past the guns of the fleet.

I looked at Danika. She had handled that interview like a pro, and the more I thought about it, the more it added onto that 'what the hell' list. Every minute something else made me wonder.

"Can we talk, Carth?"

"About?"

"We didn't finish the discussion earlier."

"All right, I'm all ears, beautiful."

She looked at me coolly. "Considering the chain of command on this

mission, isn't that inappropriate?"

I was covering fast. "Is there something you would rather I call you?"

"I have a name." She replied gently.

"Don't get yourself in a twist about it, gorgeous. I didn't mean anything by it."

"There you go again!"

"Oh for crying out- Look, maybe you'll feel better if you called me something. Go ahead. Come on. I can take it."

"This is ridiculous." She flushed, and I could tell she was keeping her temper.

"What? Afraid you'll hurt my feelings? Come on, you'll feel better. Do it, I can handle it."

"I would rather go back to my original questions."

Man she kept her temper locked down like the codes for a Bethe cycle missile. I had rarely seen anyone as young as her with so much self-control. However I was feeling puckish. "So, all business today? Fine. Are these questions really necessary?"

She shook her head. "I just want to understand my teammate better."

"Well if it's an interrogation you wanted, why didn't you say so? I promise not to scream too loudly."

She wiped her face. "This is not an interrogation. I never said that." She said with a long-suffering tone.

"No you didn't." I admitted. "I was just joking. But you do seem to be full of questions. It's refreshing to be honest. But let me ask a few first. I've been going over the battle on the _Endar Spire _over and over ever since we crashed. Some things just don't add up for me.

"Maybe you could tell me what happened. From your own perspective."

She shrugged. "I wasn't in any position to understand much of what was going on really."

"Neither was I to tell the truth." I admitted. "I was only aboard as an adviser for the most part. When the battle started it happened so fast that I don't think anyone really knows what went on. We lost a good ship and some damn fine people. And for what? On the hope that Jedi mind tricks could help us. Not that Bastila had a lot of time to react. We didn't chose that battle either. It was forced on us." I suddenly realized I was giving her all sorts of outs from my line of questioning. "I'm just surprised that there were any survivors at all to tell you the truth." I finished lamely. "But it's more than a little surprising that you were there, isn't it? What is your position with the Republic military?"

"I'm just a soldier, a grunt as you said. What's surprising about that?"

"You were a last minute addition to the crew, and you're a survivor when a lot of good people didn't stand a chance."

"What's so odd that I was a last minute addition?"

"You were the _only_ one. Not to mention that Bastila's party ordered you transferred and held up our departure for you."

She looked at me in amazement. "I don't even know what you're talking about."

"The Jedi asked for a lot of things after they came aboard. Hell, from what I saw they took over the entire ship. From Bastila to that ensign Ulgo-"

"Trask Ulgo?" She asked in a whisper.

"Yeah. Psych tech, given an ensign's bar and told to handle a special case."

"Trask was with me until we reached the bridge. He faced a dark Jedi. That was the last I saw of him."

"Well considering your connection with the Jedi, whether you know it or not, your presence on that ship, and right now on this planet is a little too convenient." I hissed. "I'm probably wrong. This may be only smoke, I know. But I learned a long time ago to take nothing at face value. One thing I hate is surprises."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Just that I always expect the unexpected. It makes life easier. Like a 'recruit grunt' with what looks like years of experience. That knows how to foul up the targeting systems of a droid long enough to take them out. That bounces off a wall like a heavy worlder in zero-gee or a Jedi. That interrogates kids-" I waved after Mission, "-like a pro. That can pop a Hollywell security box like it's unlocked, and I don't know _anyone _that can do that. "

She shook her head, rubbing her temples. "Are you always this paranoid?"

"Look, it has nothing to do with you personally. I don't trust anyone, and no, I am not going to discuss my reasons. So let's keep our minds on the important things."

"This is important."

"All right! Damn you are the most persistent woman, the most persistent person I have ever met. But right now I think we need to get moving."

Base

Danika

My mind was whirling like a sink drain. _Trask was assigned to a 'special' case._ What had been happening aboard the ship? The lockbox had surprised me as well. I had just answered the questions the box's cybernetic lock asked. How I had known what answers they were I can't explain. They... just felt right.

It wasn't far to the Bek's base. The lookout watched us approach, ready, but not automatically in attack mode. I stopped. "I'd like to see Gadon Thek please."

She looked at us with suspicion. "How do I know you're not a Vulkar spy sent to kill Gadon?"

"We came down from the Uppercity. I need Gadon's help, and a friend of the Beks up there told me to speak with him."

"Lots of people want to see Gadon. Lots more say their friends of the Beks too. Gadon has always been a man of the people, beloved by the common folk. But the days of the Bek's open door policy are gone. Between those Vulkar and this damn Sith invasion, we have too many enemies right now."

"Maybe I can be an ally against those enemies." I said. I could feel Carth tense up. If we allied ourselves with the Bek, the Vulkar automatically became our enemy. But I could see no alternative.

She looked us over. "Maybe. We can use all the help we can get, and you don't act like Sith, and I've never seen a Vulkar without his colors." She shrugged. "And it's not like the two of you could do much to him here. He's in the base, surrounded by his faithful, and Zaedra is watching his back. If you tried anything, you'd be dead in seconds." She keyed in a command. The door opened.

"So you're going to let us in?"

"Sure, why not? But be on your best behavior. The Beks are watching every move."

I understood her calm at letting us in the instant we stepped in through the inner door. There were a dozen Beks in sight, and as we entered, each surreptitiously picked up a weapon. Oh we might have been able to get past them to kill Gadon. But getting out would have been a nightmare.

I asked a Bek, and he motioned toward a desk against the wall. There, a black man sat, a wire running from the console to a socket in his head behind his left ear. A Twi-lek woman hovered over him protectively.

We walked toward them, and the woman looked up to notice us. Her eyes burned with helpless fury, and what I took to be love. She looked at Gadon, then back at us before moving across to stop us. "Hold it right there. Who are you and what is your business here?"

"I came to see Gadon Thek."

"What is your business with Gadon? Why are you bothering him-"

"Peace, Zaedra. Nobody is going to try anything here in our base. It would be a suicide mission."

"You're too trusting, Gadon. Brejik and the Vulkars want you dead. Anyone we don't know is a potential threat and I am the one in charge of keeping you alive!" He voice had a pleading tone in it.

"So what would you have me do? See no one? Order the Beks to kill anyone not in colors as the Vulkars are? Even if I must die, I will never let it come to that while I live. Now stand aside, and let them pass."

Zaedra winced. I could see that love in her eyes. She glared at us, threatening dire retaliation as she stepped aside. "As you wish, Gadon." She glared at me. "You can speak with him, but if you make any sudden moves, you'll be vaporized before you can say 'Vulkar Spy'!"

He reached up, plucking the insert from the skull socket. Then he stood. His eyes were unfocused, but his face was firm. He picked up an implant module, and set it in the socket with a click. Then he turned, and I could tell he was actually looking at us with that implant.

"You have to forgive Zaedra. Ever since the Vulkars started this insane war, she had taken her duties as my right hand a little too over-zealously. The Sith invasion hasn't helped. She seems to forget that I can take care of myself." He looked at both of us. "You came for my help. Talk to me."

"I need information on those Republic escape pods that crashed into the Undercity."

"The escape pods? I have heard that the Sith have been asking around about them in the Uppercity. For some strange reason, they haven't asked down here." He showed a feral grin. "Or at least no one that has asked has gone back up. Sending patrols into the Undercity as well, the fools."

"They might be spies for the Sith!" Zaedra cried triumphantly.

"Calm down Zaedra. If the Sith thought we had anything useful in here we would be facing a strike force, not two people. No, I think these out-worlders have their own agenda."

"We're not working with the Sith." I looked at Carth. He nodded. "My name is Danika Wordweaver. Sergeant, Republic military."

"Ah, so we are still part of the Republic. How, refreshing." He leaned into the desk, crossing his arms. "I can tell you everything I know and it won't harm my people in the slightest. But it will cause problems for the Vulkars and that is okay in my book.

"The Vulkars stripped those pods of everything of value within an hour of their landing. Before the Sith even located them. It's too bad we didn't get there first, considering what my spies told me. There was a survivor; a Republic officer named Bastila."

"Bastila! She's alive?" Carth blurted out. Gadon looked at him.

"Yes she is. If she were in our hands, it wouldn't be so bad. But the Vulkars have her. We would have asked her to carry a plea for reforms, but the Vulkars sell anyone they can catch to the Exchange and onto the Intergalactic slave market."

"Bastila is to be a slave?" I looked at Carth. At that moment I blessed the blockade. "Where is she?"

"Usually the Vulkar would sell her off to Davik or another off world connection. But a Republic officer is no ordinary catch."

"That could work to our advantage." Carth said. Unspoken was the idea that they didn't know yet what they had. The Sith would have deeded the planet over to the Vulkars if they knew.

"She's too valuable for Brejik to leave her at the base here in the Lowercity. Too much chance that his people would have their fun and damage the merchandise." He grimaced in distaste. "No, he's got her hidden away somewhere safe until the big swoop race. You'll never find her. We haven't."

"There must be some way to help her!"

"There is, but you're not going to like it. Your friend has become a pawn in Brejik's plan to take over the Lowercity. He's put her up as the Vulkar's share in the annual Swoop gang race. By putting up such a valuable prize, he's hoping to win the loyalty of the smaller gangs. If enough of them join him, he'll have the manpower to finally destroy us."

"So how do you propose we rescue her?" Carth snapped. "We can't fight every gang in the Lowercity! Hell, the Sith would have their hands full with that mission!"

"The only hope you have is for us, the Beks, to win the season opener of the races. If you help, we can win this. We have much to gain, and even more to lose."

"What do you need from us then, Gadon?" I asked.

"I can sponsor one of you as a racer, that will get you onto the Race concourse. The race is for Lowercity gangs only, though we split a tidy profit from the entertainment circuits and no one else is allowed down there. You can protect your friend, and if the Beks win, your friend is free.

"But first you have to do something for me. One of my mechanics developed a souped up accelerator for a swoop bike. A bike with that accelerator can beat anything ever made. But a traitor took off yesterday, and took the prototype with him. We don't have time to build another. They plan to use it to guarantee that they win."

I had a sinking feeling. "Where is it?"

"Inside the Vulkar base here on the Lower boulevard."

"How am I supposed to get in there?" I asked plaintively. We didn't have heavy weapons, and no place to get them.

"I admit it won't be easy. The doors on this level are locked from the inside, with no way to open them without someone letting you in. But there is a back way and I know someone that might be able to lead you to it. One of our own. A girl named Mission Vao."

"Mission?" Zaedra was appalled. "Gadon you can't be serious! She's just a kid! How is she supposed to help them with this?"

"Mission has explored every back alley of the Lowercity. Plus she knows the Undercity and the sewers better than the city planners who built it. The Vulkars have a way in down there. That was how they beat us to the escape pods. If anyone knows where that back door is, it's Mission."

I nodded. "Where can I find her?"

"She and her Wookiee friend left out of here to head down there a short while ago. I just wish I knew how she got past the Sith guards on the elevator."

"We got past the Uppercity guards without a problem."

"How?"

"We have a set of their armor."

"The Uppercity guards will let you down in uniform, but the guards down here have locked it down tighter. You need authorization papers from the Sith command. The only people going down are Sith patrols, or Bounty Hunters. But no one gets past the guard without papers.

"Now it just so happens that a Sith patrol ram into a bit of mischief recently." He opened his pocket, and pulled out a sheaf of documents. "The poor souls didn't need these anymore. I can't give them to you, but I can trade them. You said you had a set of Sith armor. I want it."

"What do you need uniforms for?"

"I like to be prepared. Eventually the Sith are going to grow bored up there, and decide to come down here. When they do, a disguise will give us an advantage in some of those skirmishes."

"All right. The west apartment complex. There's an old-fashioned manual input security lock-box." I wrote down the code I had discovered. "Input that, and the suit is yours."

He handed it to Zaedra, who sent someone. A few minutes later, they came back lugging the suit. Gadon handed me the papers. "I'll be back." I promised.

The Beks got us close enough to the elevator that we could see it.  
Far ahead I could see a gate with a Sith guard standing behind half a dozen blaster turrets. He'd take down everyone on the street if those opened fire. I stiffened my back, and strode down the boulevard like I owned it. The guard looked up, accepting the papers I showed him.

"Best be on your guard. We've lost quite a few patrols down there. Be especially careful of the Undercity dwellers. Filthy beasts. There are also Rakghouls. If you need, check with a patrol, and they can give you some of the serum against the disease if there is any left."

I nodded, stuffing the papers back in my pocket, and entered the elevator. Carth loosened up his hands. "Ready?"

"As I'll ever be." He replied. I pushed the button and we sank into the depths.

Undercity

I had thought the Lowercity was bad, but this was squalor. The stench hit us first, garbage old enough to vote, and perpetual twilight. Here there was finally dirt, over a kilometer below the Lowercity.

A pair of young men faced off against us. All that kept them facing us was sheer bravado. "This is our elevator! No one uses our elevator unless they pay the toll!"

"I don't believe this. Even the beggars are trying to shake us down." Carth commented.

"Five credits! It costs five credits to use our elevator!" The other boy screeched."

I pulled out a five credit token, and flipped it to the closer one. He snatched it as if it were life itself. Considering the conditions around us, it might very well have been.

"Credits!" He held the coin so his partner saw it. "We have credits! Food, a blanket..." He was crying.

"Come on. If someone else sees it, they'll take it away."

"Go away!" A young girl cried. She walked over facing the boys. I figured she might be fourteen, but judging the conditions she could have been an emaciated eighteen. The boys scurried off. She approached us diffidently, like a kicked puppy. "I'm sorry about them. Those two give the entire village a bad name. We're not all like that." She added defensively.

"I'm sure you're all fine upstanding citizens." Carth replied. The girl bristled at the sarcasm. "It's just too bad your welcoming committee gives such a bad first impression."

"Carth." I growled. "My name is Danika. What's your name?"

My tone brought her back to her earlier mood, though she looked at Carth as if he would hit her. "My name is Shaleena. You're from the up world aren't you?" She looked excited. "I was born here, I've never been there. Is it as beautiful as I'm told?"

I considered the Lowercity which I had considered bad. Even that would have been better than this. "It's nothing special."

"Not to you I suppose. But you're probably used to its beauty by now." She looked up as if at heaven. "I see it in my dreams sometimes. The city, the sky, the stars... It all sounds so wonderful." She smiled sadly.

"Gendar, the leader of our village, tells me I should spend more time trying to make life better here than dreaming of what I cannot have. Maybe he is right. You probably think I am foolish, but when I was little, Rukil told us stories of what it was like up there, and ever since then I have dreamed of going."

"Rukil?"

"He's the oldest man in the village. The children call him Rukil wrinkle-skin. But he's the kindest man I have ever met. He told us such stories! I still listen when he speaks of the Promised land. I know they're just stories, legends, but, sometimes it makes all of this seem less dark somehow."

"The promised land?"

"She shook her head sharply. "They're just stories to make the young children smile. That's all they are. But Rukil believes it really exists. Sometimes I can almost believe in it myself." Her hand fluttered at the filth around her. "But then I open my eyes and see the truth. The ugly truth of life."

She sighed again. "I guess we have to make the best of what life has given us. If you really want to know more about the promised land, ask Rukil."

"Where would he be?"

"Somewhere near the center of the village." She waved vaguely at a cluster of tents. "He's too old to wander far. After all, he's over a hundred years old."

"Could you answer some more questions?"

"Sure. But Rukil or Gendar could answer them better."

"Have others been down here?"

Yes, a lot more than usual. We even had soldiers down here. Big mean men in shiny armor. Gang members, people dressed like you."

"What about the village? How did this happen?"

"I was born here to start with. My parents were Outcasts. They were banished for some crime before I was born, They never really talked about it. Everyone here is an Outcast, or the descendants of one. It's tough down here, but we survive. I think it's easier for the children because they never knew anything different.

"Some of the people have given into the misery, become harsh or angry. But most of us are good people regardless of what they might have done."

I looked at the pain around me, and I wanted to drag them aboard the elevator, blast the way through the gangs, through the Sith, and take them to the Uppercity. To show Shaleena the stars for the first time. Then the enormity of the task beat down on me. I could do so little for them. "We will be back. I need to speak with Gendar."

"Oh, okay." She looked sad. We had been the bright spot in a black mass of existence. "Well if you want to talk, you can always find me near here."

I vowed if anything could be done for these people, I would do it.

Rukil was ancient. I felt like I was in the presence of one of the forest giants of my home. He looked at me with rheumy eyes, then his eyes widened. "You are from the world above! Yet, you are different from those others. Is this the time of destiny then? Is this a portent of our salvation? Or is it yet another false sign to mislead us from the true path?"

I knelt facing him. Carth leaned forward. "Be careful, this one might be as dangerous as he is crazy."

But Rukil ignored him. "Speak to me upworlder. Tell me what fate you unleash for us now, salvation or damnation! Speak!"

"What do you mean, old man?"

"A question." He breathed. "You are confused, bewildered, perplexed. Not that odd I suppose. After all these years my mind wanders farther than my body ever did. Perhaps some things I can make clearer. I am Rukil. Rukil wrinkle skin the children call me when they don't think I can hear. I am the oldest of the Outcasts that still live."

"I am Danika Wordweaver, Rukil. What do you want of me?"

"Once I was honored for my wisdom, but times have been hard. Many fell away from the true faith, only the children listen to me now. Once I had an apprentice. But she is also gone now."

"What happened to her?"

"I sent her into the wasteland to find... To find something of great importance to me. I cannot tell you unless you prove to be the messenger I seek. Will you help an old man? Seek my Apprentice Malya. Whatever she found might be enough. I beg you, do this for me."

"We have to enter that wasteland as well. If I find any sign of her, I will tell you."

"Finding her may be difficult. She could be anywhere under the hulking city." He waved toward the sky. "But if you find her, then I will know that you are the guide to- to what we seek. Only then can I tell you what I know."

"I will do what I can." I promised.

"I wish you good fortune, upworlder. Our fates are in your hands."

I took his hand, and squeezed it gently. I walked away, and Carth caught my arm. "What are you doing, promising the moon?"

I rounded on him. "Look around you Carth!" I waved at the surroundings. "What have they to look forward to but misery? Only the hope that the promised land Rukil spoke of is real. You have never been in their shoes, Carth. You lived on a better planet, under a better government with food they couldn't even imagine! You had something to look forward to.

"Why do you think I gave that starveling child money? Money means nothing to me! I had to help them, even that much. If we had time I would have given Shaleena stories to rival Rukil's, and all of them true! If I didn't try to help them I might as well walk through the camp with my blaster firing!" I motioned toward a line of blaster marks against a wall, at a woman laying with what were obviously close misses burned into her flesh. "As if that would help! Others have already done that!"

I spun away from him. I was striking out at the wrong people. The leaders of the planet in their aeries had done this. If they had been standing there I would have shot the lot of them.

Gendar was easy to spot. A dozen people were trying to move a lump of plascrete the size of a speeder using only hand tools. One man was in there, pushing twice as hard as anyone else, cajoling, chivvying, and pushing the others into greater efforts. I looked at the walls for the first time. They had been built using stones just like the one they were moving. All moved by hand. I went over, and put my shoulder into the stone. A moment later Carth joined me as we finally pushed it into place.

Gendar finally stopped pushing, looking at us. Then he strode over. "Greetings, upworlders. We rarely see your kind down here. I am surprised that so many have been visiting us recently. You even helped. At least you spent time with Rukil, which is more than any others have." He motioned toward the old man's tent.

"No offense, but I can understand why you're not on the tour list here." Carth said.

Gendar snorted. "Why have you come to this sunless hell? Is there something you need from my village or me? Your kindness to Rukil begs for reparation."

"Why do you people live down here?" I asked

"We are the Outcasts, shunned by the upper world and banished here for our crimes. Long before I was born we banded together to build our walls, to have some sense of security in this hell. I am the leader, as my father and grandfather were. Many have been here for generations, our children tainted with whatever crime their ancestors committed.

"There is no return for us, even the youngest. But we survive the filth, the roving gangs who don't want to live with order. The slavers, and the Rakghoul by protecting each other."

"What a horrible way to live!"

"Life can be hard." Gendar admitted. "Some have grown bitter and uncaring. This is especially true among those newly among us, cast down for yet another crime. Those that also hurt others are banished again from our walls. But we live on what we have. Perhaps one day we will have all we need." He barked a laugh. "Now I'm starting to sound like old Rukil."

I sighed. "May I ask you some questions?"

"Ask. I can only answer for the Undercity, but what knowledge I have of that is yours."

"I am looking for a Twi-lek named Mission Vao."

"I know this Twi-lek, though I have never spoken with her. She and her Wookiee friend have passed through here many times bound for the sewers. They have brought things they have found for sale to Igear, our only merchant, and brought food and things of value for our people before. They are friends."

"How do we get into the sewers from here?"

"There are two entrances. One is a hundred meters to the southwest of the gate. The other is a kilometer or more to the northeast. But I warn you, the sewers are a dangerous place. Rakghouls, slavers, even the Sith military that has come down recently."

"Slavers?"

Gendar waved around him. "Can you think of a better place? The upper world would charge them for setting up their operation. A number of my people would put on a slave collar willingly in return for a promise of even one full meal a day." He sighed. "Is there anything else?"

I shook my head silently.

"Then I must be back to my duties. Take care upworlders. Come back to our village if there is anything you need."

"Even here there is hope." I whispered. I had seen the gate on our trip around the village, and I walked toward it. One grimy little man had spread out a number of items. As he saw us approach, he smiled widely, displaying rotted teeth.

"Hey, you're not from the village. You must be upworlders! I can smell the credits just sitting in your pocket, burning their way through."

"Be careful with this one. There's something slimy about him. I wouldn't trust him as far as I can throw him."

"Yes, we're upworlders." I looked at Carth coldly. "This from a man who finds every reason not to trust me?" I whispered, then turned back to Igear. "Not at the moment, friend."

"Well just remember where I am. The stock isn't the best mind, but it's the best that can be bought down here."

We walked past him toward the gate. A woman ran past us, and was shrieking near the gate. I drew and charged toward where she was.

"Hurry Hendar, Hurry! I can hear it coming!" She screamed.

The guard was staring out, and shook his head. "He's not going to make it, Hester. He's doomed. Blast it! I told him he was a fool to go so far alone."

"He will make it. Hurry Hendar!"

A crowd was gathering and pressed us into the gate. A man was frantically running toward us. His only weapon was a quarterstaff of metal. He staggered to a stop less than ten meters from the gate. "Open the gate! Quickly, there isn't much time!"

Behind him a gray skinned abomination loped toward the helpless man.

The guard was caught in a dilemma "I can't open the gate. The Rakghouls are too close."

"They'll kill him if you don't open the gate!' Hester screamed.

"They'll kill us all if I do!"

No, you can't just let him die! It isn't fair!' She turned, and her eyes caught mine. "Please, make him open the gate, my husband will die if he doesn't!"

I shoved through. "Open the gate!"

"Are you mad!"

"Close it after I have passed!"

He stared at me then grabbed the controls The structure lifted, from the thudding sound I heard they must have used steam power! I scuttled under the gate, hearing it huff to a stop then start back down again.

Hendar stared back toward me, and beyond him I saw a nightmare charging forward. Closer the skin looked as if the entire surface was a single blister. A maw with razor sharp teeth opened, and it leaped.

I spun, feeling the body fall in pieces behind me. Another came and another. I could hear a blaster firing over my head, and saw Hendar slam the staff down hard enough to bend it on the last of them.

"Are we clear?" I demanded.

"There aren't any more!" I looked up, and waved at Carth.

The gate huffed back into the air, and we hurried inside. Hester clutched her man as if she would never let him go again. "Thank you." She whispered.

I could hear Carth scrambling down the face of the wall, and motioned toward the gate. "We have to go now."

The gate guard stared at me like he'd never seen the like before. "No upworlder has ever risked their life for one of us. What kind of people birthed you?"

I shook my head. "I couldn't just let him die. Open the gate. And one thing."

"Yes?"

"No discussion about opening it when we come back, all right?"

He blushed, and turned back toward the controls.

The gate rose, and we stepped out into that hell.

Wasteland

Looking at them, you wouldn't have believed they were the footings of buildings. Massive pillars thrust into the earth, and above all spread the treelike structure of the City. I was amazed that any light reached here at all.

"Smoke." Carth pointed toward the southeast. I nodded. We walked that direction. I stopped waving for Carth to stop also.

The noise I had heard came again, panting, whimpering. Suddenly a figure came into view. It was Mission. Her clothes were filthy, her eyes wide in fear. She stopped, then must have recognized us. She staggered toward us.

"You have to help me, please! No one else will, the Beks can't help me. But he's my friend!" She staggered to a stop, falling to her knees. "You'll help me won't you?" She asked plaintively

I caught her. "Whoa, slow down, Mission. What's wrong?"

"It's Zaalbar! He's in trouble, big trouble! We have to help him! If we don't they'll sell him into slavery!"

"Calm down Mission. Slow down, take a deep breath, and start from the beginning."

"Me, Me and Zaalbar were just wandering around down here in the Undercity. You know, looking for stuff, kind of exploring. We do it all the time."

"I guess with a Wookiee at you side most things leave you alone." Carth commented.

"Only this time they were waiting for us. Gamorrean slave-takers. We didn't even have a chance to really run. Big Z threw himself at them, and roared for me to run.

"I took off, thinking he was right behind me, but he wasn't. There were too many of them, he couldn't get away. They'll hold him for the next slaver that arrives, I know it!"

"Do you know where they took him?" I demanded.

"They have a section of the sewers they've blocked off with mines. The stink probably reminds them of home. That's where they've probably taken him."

"Stay here, we'll go rescue him."

"No way! I'm the reason he's in trouble, and I'm not abandoning him again! I'm going with you!"

"Gadon told me you might know of a back door into the Black Vulkar's base. After I've helped you, I want to ask you about getting in."

"Help me and I'll dive into hell for you!" She said. "Once Big Z is safe I can show you a way right into their cantina!"

I shrugged. I drew the blaster I carried. "Can you use this?"

She took it. "Yeah, just point and pull the trigger, right?"

I shook my head. I started to take it back, and she stopped me. "See that rock on the pile over there? The top one?" I looked it was fist sized, about twenty meters away. She aimed, and fired, the rock shattering. "I may be a kid, but I do know guns." She looked sad. "I learned a long time ago."

"Then I won't have to teach you." I waved at the area around us. "Where is the fastest way down into the sewers?"

She pointed to the north. We sprinted that way.

Rakghouls wandered in small packs along our path, we avoided them as much as possible. I noticed that every pack seemed to cluster near small scrub bushes. "What is that?" I asked Mission.

"Some kind of plant." She replied with thoughtless innocence. "It grows only down here. The villagers tell me it's just a weed, and isn't edible."

A pack wandered by us, carrying parts of what had been a man. They dumped them near the bush, then began to feed. Oddly enough, each of them gently rubbed their hands on the flowers, then on each other. Then they wandered mindlessly to other stands of the brush, repeating the rubbing gesture.

A short while later, we passed one of the plants without rakghouls. I cut a branch off it, and stuck it in my pouch.

"There!" Mission ran toward a heavy grating. She caught it and it screeched upward, showing a ladder downward. "That's the way in from here."

"From here?" I asked.

"Of course." She waved toward the distant camp. "You don't think I wandered past a guard do you?" She motioned downward. "There's another way in down there. That's the way we always went."

I waved her to silence. Near the grate, a body lay, curiously peaceful. A woman, her torso shredded by rakghouls, eyes staring at the distant sky. Her pack lay near by and I opened it. A journal lay atop some supplies, and I opened it. "Poor Malya." I whispered. The apprentice had been here trying to get into the sewers when her fate had come. I opened it to the last pages delicately.

'There is no sign of either Orol or Marosi here in the wasteland. Rukil knew they were searching for the path to the promised land, but he didn't know where they might have looked for it. I believe they went into the sewer. I laughed at the thought when it came to me. A promised paradise at the end of a sewer line!

'I must go down there to find out. The entrance is only a few meters away.'

I slipped the book into my pack, then stood. "Lead on, Mission."


	5. Taris 3: Sewers

Sewers

The ladder led about a hundred meters straight down. The grate walkway was wide enough for a vehicle. Mission told me that there were half a dozen other ways down, and the sewer workers used small wheeled vehicles in the newer sections. This section however was much older, and while it was wide enough for the vehicles, none of the entryways that now existed would allow them.

We came to a door, and stopped. A mine had been laid there, and Mission walked up gently and disarmed then put the mine in her pack. "This is how I make some eating money." She said. "The villagers can use these in the areas where the walls are getting bad."

I won't go over the entire hell of that journey. Rakghouls wandered the halls, and bodies lay where they had been killed. Some had been gnawed to the bone, blasters or blades had killed others. It was an egalitarian mixture. Outcasts, gang members of the Bek and Vulkar, the occasional sewer worker. One body dead less than a day intrigued me. The man had been an outcast, a collar still encircled his neck, and his hands were locked in it in death, as if he had been clawing it off.

"Slave collar." Carth identified it. "When you try to run they hit you with an electrical charge. They also have a proximity setting. The farther you run, the higher the charge."

I hissed in anger.

We opened a door, and I started forward. Carth and Mission followed behind, eyes on the area as we paced on.

"Carth, you're a star-pilot for the Republic?"

"Uh huh."

"You've been all over the Galaxy, I bet."

"I've seen a few planets, yeah."

"So how does Taris rate compared to other worlds you've seen?"

"To be honest, Mission Taris would rate pretty low. The prejudice, the rich living high and well while everyone else is crushed below them. It's not a pretty picture."

"But it was better before the Sith arrived..." She sighed. "All right, it was still pretty bad. Maybe Taris is pretty bad."

"Trust me on this, Mission, There are much better worlds. Then again, there are a lot that are as bad if not worse. This is not the kind of place a kid should grow up in, even with a Wookiee to watch her back."

"Hey, I watch out for Big Z too, ya-know. He's my friend, not my baby-sitter!" She turned to watch her section again. "Geez, ask a simple question and get a lecture. I don't need this crap."

"Don't you snap at me missy! You want a lecture? Here's one for you. Only bratty children fly off the handle because of a simple statement!"

They were starting to shout, and I spun, hissing in a whisper. "Settle down, both of you!"

Mission however was on a roll. "I don't have to take this crap from you, Carth! You ain't my father, though you're old enough to be his father! So keep your lectures in that withered old head of yours."

The next hour passed in dead frigid silence.

We stopped, and Mission waved at the door ahead of us. "From here the Gamorreans have sealed their own area. The pen they installed last time was right down the way about thirty meters on the right." I nodded, and keyed the door. I walked in, and there, right in front of the door she had mentioned was a Gamorrean.

You've seen them before, two meters or more tall, heavily built, the Gamorreans have just one use as far as Galactic society is concerned. That is in the role of bodyguard, soldier, bouncer, or slave taker. Anything simple where brutality is the norm. They are brutal creatures that hadn't even developed a meager technology beyond crude hand weapons before the Republic found their world.

This was a male, what is called a boar. Somewhere nearby there would be a sow. If they operate in groups, a Sow is required just to stop the internecine feuding. She guides them in what must be done, and does all negotiating.

The boar snuffled, and spread his arms wide and rushed toward me. His axe, a massive weapon almost a meter long just at the blade still hung on his belt. Obviously he hadn't seen Carth and Mission. He thought he just had a new prize for the pen.

I cut upward, and his eyes widened in shock even as he fell. Another cut slashed his throat, and his death scream came out as a whistling sound.

There was another door on the left before the door Mission had earmarked as their pen, and I opened it. A mine lay there on the grating, and beyond it a badly decomposed body.

After Mission had disarmed and picked up this mine, I checked the body. It had been an outcast, and had been dead from my estimate for almost eighty years. I pulled a grimy journal from the pack. "Marosi." I breathed. "One of the people Malya was looking for." In his hand was yet another journal. I looked past him at the door that was there. The lock was an antique, at least a century out of date. "Mission." I pointed at the door.

She went over, working on it. "Haven't seen one this old before. I've been everywhere down here, and never even seen this door." She hummed as she worked, then with a groan, the door opened. It led into darkness. Mission was still crouched, and she pointed at the ground. "Now that is surprising."

I knelt beside her, looking at the track that led off into darkness. "What is it?"

"You know the mass trans system they have up in the Uppercity? This looks like a spur line. But why would they have built one down here?"

I shook my head. "Most cities are just built on top of themselves, Mission. Maybe it led to another section of the city."

"No way." She pointed down the tunnel. "That way only goes to the sea. As far down as this section is, and the slope of the tunnel suggests that it comes out under the ocean." She tapped a button, yelping as the door slammed closed. Then they opened on an passenger car.

We left the mystery for someone else to explore, and after closing the door, we went back into the hall. We were just at the door when I heard a roar of pain and anger from within.

"Big Z!" Mission screamed, and she ran up, punching the door code in frantic haste. I brushed her aside, and spun to face a Gamorrean sow . There isn't much to tell them apart to someone who isn't a zenobiologist. But I knew it was a she from the box she held in her hand, a device that had been given to them. A male would have smashed it into uselessness by now. She grunted, and reached for me. I heard a blaster behind me, either Carth or Mission joining the fray.

I chopped into her, and she tried to block the blow with her arm. The box sizzled, and if anything Zaalbar's screams grew even more frantic.

Another, a male came at me, and I killed him. Two other had been in the room, but both were dead. One had a neat hole in his forehead, and I glanced at Mission. But she was running across the room toward another door. This had a manual lock, and she worked at it frantically. The door hissed open, and we saw Zaalbar curled up, clutching at the collar around his neck.

"They must have been punishing him for something!" Mission cried, running to her friend. "Find the control box!"

I looked at the box that the Sow still held, but it fell apart as I tried to pry it free. "It's damaged! I can't shut it off!"

Mission screamed wordlessly, trying to find the lock to pick it. "I don't have anything that will work!" She shouted. "Zaalbar, hang in there!"

I looked at him, knowing there was nothing we could do. Except... "Carth, Mission, hold him!"

"What?"

"Sit him up and grab his head! Pull it down on his chest!"

They tried, but Zaalbar was in a world of his own pain. He flailed, sending Mission flying like a twig.

I drew the vibroblade, and set it for it's finest setting. "Zaalbar." I called. "You have to sit still for this to work!"

He ignored me.

Then from the depths of my mind, I found something to use. I roared at him in his own language and he froze, then leaned forward into Carth.

"What are you-"

I swing the vibroblade, trusting in my skill at something I had heard of, practiced, but had never actually done.

It's called _Fybylka_, or the 'fly cut' among the Echani. A cut that is supposed to cut just the upper layers of the flesh, yet not deep enough to cripple. It isn't meant to kill you enemy or even to wound him seriously. It is meant to shame him. To leave a mark that others laugh at.

It got its name because of the way it is practiced. You practice on smaller and smaller targets until finally you can cut one fly out a swarm without touching another.

There was no resistance. Anything lighter than body armor would be cut by that blade, and it was over before anyone even knew what I planned.

There was a flash of a burned out power pack, and Zaalbar threw the collar from him. I suddenly felt cold.

When I had first seen him, something hadn't looked right. Now, staring at that horrible collar, I knew what had been missing.

_Every Wookiee I had ever seen had a collar just like it! _

They had been slaves.

Zaalbar rolled over. Mission came back, wincing, and hugged his neck. Those massive arms closed in a curiously gentle embrace, the claws retracted so they wouldn't injure her. "Where is the Wookiee?" He gasped out.

"What Wookiee?"

"The one who shouted 'sit still you fool' in _Shyriiwook_? My own language?"

Carth pointed wordlessly at me. Zaalbar just stared in astonishment.

I reached back into whatever well I had dragged those words, and added, in the same language, "Have the children of Bacca grown deaf?"

He grinned at that. Then suddenly grew solemn. "You have saved me from a death in life of slavery. You did this without being asked. There is only one way I can repay such a debt. I will swear a life debt to you."

"Zaalbar, are you serious?" Mission was stunned. "You know how important that is!"

"Mission, I must." He grunted.

"A life debt? What is that?" I asked

Zaalbar looked at me as if he was surprised. "You speak my language but don't know what a life debt is?"

"I don't know where I learned your language, Zaalbar. I honestly don't know what a life debt is."

"Most would not." He glared at the bodies of the Gamorreans. "They are like most of your kind. They see our great physical strength. The cunning use of our claws, and see just workers or guards. Since we do not feel comfortable among your kind we cannot be hired, so they must take us as slaves.

"When they captured me, I could see no end to my misery, I would have forced them to kill me rather than submit. A lot of my people do."

"A life debt is like the most solemn vow a Wookiee can give." Mission burst in. "It means that wherever you go, even into death, he has to follow you."

"In the presence of you all, I Zaalbar, son of Freyyr, son of Shoorii, swear to follow you through life, through pain, through suffering, through death itself if need be." He knelt, reaching out as if a child asking for a parent to comfort him. "My oath will endure. Like the Kash vines that entrap, and the Wroshyr that root our world."

Instinctively, I took the hand. "Zaalbar, son of Freyyr, son of Shoorii, I accept this burden. I swear in return never to put you in danger that I myself do not face."

He stood. "Somewhere you learned of this. Whatever your memory of it is. You answered well."

I shrugged helplessly. Then I looked at him. The Gamorreans had treated him roughly, and he bore wounds still. "Right now you need medical care, and we can't stop. Mission, you said there was a way up from here?"

"Yeah. She pointed down the hall outside. "Down there about a hundred meters. Can you climb Big Z?"

"I can do what I must, Mission."

We walked down the hall, Mission and Carth helping him along. They reached a section of paneling, and Mission popped it out in a practiced manner. "I'm going with him up until he reaches the Lowercity. But I made a promise, and I will be back."

Carth

I had watched in amazement as Danika had charged four Gamorreans as if they were nothing. I was even more astonished that she spoke the Wookiee language. The people I knew that could were few enough to count on one hand with fingers left over.

Now she was trusting that little squirt to come back. I almost screamed at her. We didn't have time for this!

Danika leaned into the wall, seemingly lost in patient thought. But once the sound faded from the others, she suddenly spoke. "We need to talk."

"Sounds fair. I don't like having to hope Mission is going to come back-"

"We wait for her." It was an order, and I bristled. "That isn't what I meant. "I mean this problem you seem to have with me."

I sighed. "I knew you wouldn't understand where I was coming from. Let me try to explain. Even with the mystery of your life before I met you, I still respect you. When it comes to fighting, even negotiating you're one of the most skilled women I have ever met. You've saved not only my butt but a lot of people on this mud ball right down to rescuing that guy Hendar. I'm lucky to have you here helping me.

"That said, there is no way I'm going to stop watching you, and being wary. I'm just not built that way, period."

"Not built that way? You sound like a droid in a feedback loop."

Maybe so. But I have been betrayed by people I trusted before. Let's just say that is never happening again."

"What, you want an oath on it? A guarantee?"

"I don't know that you'll betray me. But even an oath would mean nothing. There are no guarantees, from you, from me, from anyone. But you don't have to take it personally."

"I wonder how anyone can live trusting no one."

"I live just fine thank you so very much."

She looked at me, and I could see the pain in her eyes. "Are you sure you don't want to talk about it?

"Why! Why is it so damned important whether I trust you or not? Why do you even care?"

"I do care." She whispered.

"We don't have time for this." I cocked my head, I could hear someone climbing back down the tube. "Let's just drop it for now, Okay? We have a mission." As I said that, Mission popped out of the tube, and replaced the panel. "And we have a Mission among us." I tried to lighten the mood. Danika still looked worried, and Mission glared at me. "All right, I'll shut up." I groused.

Mission

That Nerf-herder tried to make a joke, but I wasn't having any of it.

I had wanted to stay up there with Zaalbar, he had been pretty banged up. But when he heard of my promise to that woman he had told me he'd never speak to me again if I didn't follow through.

"Since Zaalbar swore a life debt, that means you're stuck with me too. I almost lost him once, and I'm not letting him go anywhere without me along."

"Glad to have you aboard, Mission." The woman said.

"Well I owe you one back door into the Vulkar's base. Don't worry I know the best way in, because no one in their right mind would use it." I started off down the tunnel at a jog.

"Why not?" The woman was in armor, and it had to be heavy, but she moved like it didn't weigh anything.

"Because there's a Rancor nest in that section of the tunnels."

"A Rancor? Who in the hell shipped a Rancor here?" She asked

I shrugged. "I don't know. Where do they come from anyway?"

"No one knows, and except for idiots that buy the damn things, no one cares." Carth growled. "Thanks to them you find them in a lot of places."

"Well this one is huge. It eats anything it can get it's claws into, and most people are smart enough to stay away from it."

"Unlike us." Danika commented.

"Hey, a rancor may be big, but it's as dumb as a Vulkar. We can get by it, no problem."

I found the path, and opened the door. A force field lit the hall with a hellish light. "That's the way." I said, moving to the console of a computer. "It's coded, but a Black Vulkar had a little too much to drink a week or so ago, and I sorta went through his pockets. Gadon was happy, and sent someone to check it out, but they haven't come back." I keyed in, and the force-field died. "Let's roll."

"That was pretty good, Mission." Carth said. "Better than anyone I've seen."

I felt like crap. Now he was trying to make nice, but I was still mad.

"Can we talk Carth?"

His face went from animated to cold. The guy must have been hell at a Pazaak table. "Is it going to a civil discussion? Or am I in for another tantrum?"

"Tantrum! Why you Nerf-herding slime beast, I'm trying to apologize!" I shook my head. "It's just, I've been treated like a kid all my life! I'm just sick of it."

Carth sighed, and he shook his head. "Yeah, I know. I'm sorry for what I said too. I've been on edge lately." He snorted. "Not surprising. But I shouldn't be taking it out on you."

"It's about time you two made up." Danika said. Carth looked at her, and there was something between them there.

"Mission, no matter what I said, you're not on a free ride here. If it wasn't for you we wouldn't have found this place, gotten by the force field or known about the rancor. We needed you."

"You mean that, don't you?" I felt my heart lift. "No one ever told me they needed me. Not even Zaalbar. He might think it, but he's not much for talking as you might have noticed."

"Ah, you know how it is. Sometimes you just need a few words of encouragement. Kids are like that."

"Kids! Why you..." I sputtered down as I saw his grin. "Oh you old geezer!"

We chuckled together. Danika led off. It was more of the same tunnels, except the Vulkars had tagged these. We came to a ramp, and down at the bottom I saw an arm laying on the grate. Danika ignored it, pausing to open the door. She froze, then waved for us to step up.

The rancor was big all right. Bigger than it had been the last time I saw it. Problem was, it was standing right by the door that led into the Vulkar base. I almost asked why it was, but the door opened, and someone was shoved through it. I think it was one of the merchants I knew from the Lowercity.

Whoever he was, he'd just become dinner. The rancor snatched him up, and stuffed him into its mouth. The scream died as the teeth slammed down, then it sucked the rest of him in.

Danika looked at this impassively. "Let me guess, that is the way we have to go, right?"

I nodded wordlessly. She shrugged, then went back to the arm that lay there. The tunnel we were in was too small for the Rancor to wedge itself into. Whoever had lot the arm must have tripped trying to escape, and grabbed the grating. It hadn't helped obviously. She took a pad from under the hand, and scanned it. "Do you know a Hala Thrombo?"

"Sure, he's like the best Scout the Beks have!" She held up the arm wordlessly. I looked at it, reality dawning. "Oh."

"Carth see if there's a canister of some kind around here. The pad made mention of some kind of scent marker."

He looked around, then came back shaking his head.

"Hala used to carry knives and stuff up his sleeve." I offered. Danika reached into the tight sleeve, and drew out a small flat box containing three vials.

"What is that?"

"The Beks contacted someone in the Exchange, and they sold them some rancor lure." She held up the vial. "One whiff of this and the damn thing would follow us all the way back to the Uppercity." She nibbled her lip, then reached up to a slotted section of her vest. A grenade popped into her hand, and she folded the hand of the severed arm over it. Then she stuffed a vial of the stink-stuff into the sleeve. She crushed the vial, armed the grenade and threw the arm out into the room where the rancor was.

I had never smelled anything as bad as that before. Not even Zaalbar's breath could compare. The rancor spun around, looking toward us, then it sniffed. To him it was some kinda desert! He thundered over to the arm, sniffed it again, then picked it up and stuffed it in his mouth.

He had just swallowed when there was a muffled boom, and smoke shot out of its mouth. It clawed at its neck, then staggered. Dropping to one knee, it whimpered, and for a moment I felt sorry for it. Then I looked at the pile of skeletons out there, and the pity died. With a final gasp, it collapsed and died.

Danika moved toward the door, then motioned for us to get ready.

Danika

I centered myself. The stink of both the Rancor and the scent that had led it to its death was there. Suddenly I felt puckish. Instead of opening it, I reached out and tapped on the door. Not the slam of a rancor hoping it will fall, but a hesitant knock. Nothing happened, and I was going to knock again when it opened. A Vulkar stood there, staring at me in amazement.

He fell as I cut into him with my ritual brand, and I was moving past him before he hit the ground. Another Vulkar was standing at the other end of the hall, and his stunned expression was still there as he pawed at his holster. I cut him down, then looked back. Carth and Mission were right behind me.

I shrugged opened the elevator and keyed it. I stepped into a hall, and spun. A droid was walking down the hall, head turning to watch for any movement. I leaped into a charge, and as it turned, brought the brand down, cutting into the carapace. The droid squealed, and fell.

"Hey." Carth walked over to me then tapped me on the head as if he were trying to make a recalcitrant droid operate correctly. "Try not to charge in."

I shook my head, crossed the hall, and opened another door. A Vulkar looked up when I entered, amazed. Being unarmed we tied him up. A girl with a slave collar occupied the next room. She squeaked as I motioned for silence. "Please, don't kill me! I'm just a slave. I don't know anything."

I shushed her again. "Mission?"

She moved around behind the girl. "Local slave collar knock-off. This one I can handle." Mission said.

"I need some answers if you have them." I said, sitting the girl down as Mission worked.

"I don't know a lot." She admitted.

"There's another prisoner. A woman named Bastila."

"That must be that Republic officer. Brejik had her taken to a safe location. I don't know where."

"The Vulkars stole a prototype swoop accelerator. Where is that?"

"I don't know. There's a lower level accessible by the other elevator. I'm told there's a garage down there. I'm only allowed up here." She shook her head. "You'd best get your friend out fast. The swoop race is tomorrow, and they'll move her to the Race concourse. If she ends up with the Vulkars after that she'll be lucky if they just sell her. A lot of the Vulkars are mad because Brejik won't let them play with her, like they do me." I looked at the scars and bruises she displayed on arms and legs.

"Got it." Mission unsnapped the collar, and the girl pulled it away, staring at it in shock.

"Can you get out of here?"

"Not if the Vulkars are still in the main room." She pointed out the door. "But if they aren't I can outrun anything I have to just to get free."

"Wait here." I said. The door opened into another hall. I sprinted down it. A Vulkar was coming out of the hall to my left and I cut him down before he even knew I was there. I signaled to Carth, and he sent the girl toward me. She grasped my hand without a word, and ran out the door into the Lowercity.

There were a couple more droids, but we dispatched them efficiently. Mission ran to a console, and hummed wordlessly. "There's a lot of guards over there." She motioned toward our left. "Looks like a barracks to me." She keyed in a sequence, then grinned. "There were guards I should say. I just blew the lot of them with an access panel." She handed me a pad. "I opened all the security doors except for that one." She tapped the map. "We need a key card for it. I also shut down all of the blaster turrets they have in the elevator room."

I started toward the barracks she had earmarked, and a Twi-lek suddenly appeared ahead of me. He took one look, and fell to his knees. "Please!"

I approached him. "Do you know him?" I asked Mission.

"I recognize him, though I don't know the name. One of the old Vulkars."

"As if the new are better." He snarled in Twi-lek.

"What do you mean?" I asked him in his own language.

"Brejik thinks being insane will earn him respect. Anyone like me that tries to talk him out of it gets stuck in the lower ranks. I used to be one of the top men in the gang. Now I'm just a flunky who's supposed to stare at the monitor."

I bit my lip. Could I trust him?

"I'd say it's about time for you to take a break at the cantina." I suggested. He stared at me in hope, then ran toward the Lowercity entrance.

"You trust the wrong people, you can end up dead." Carth said.

"Trust no one, and you end up alone." I snapped back. There was a belt from some Sith armor on the table, and I found an injector filled with a clear serum. The pad beside it identified it as a sample of the rakghoul serum. From the reading, there were six doses. I pocketed it, and motioned toward the barracks.

The panel had blasted free inside, and everyone lay dead. We ransacked the bodies, and I found the key card we needed.

The door opened smoothly, and I gulped at the turrets that faced us. Not as heavy as the one's at the entrance to the Undercity, only three of them. But enough to put all of us on slabs if we hadn't been careful.

The elevator took us up, and onto the garage level. A few bikes sat there, opened up as if they were being worked on. We moved past them into another hall. Two mines were laid, and Mission took them both down, putting them in her pack. "Hey these are collector's items! Mines from inside the Black Vulkar base!"

I shook my head. Carth smothered a laugh. A Vulkar saw me, and shouted. I charged him, hearing shots as Mission and Carth took out the others. A door opened, and a pair of Twi-lek stared at us.

"What do we have here?" The male asked. He looked at the woman, and spoke in his own language. "Fools that were hired to steal Brejik's new toy."

"Can I kill them now, Kandon?" She asked in the same language.

I stood, keeping my face impassive. "You could at least speak something I understand."

Kandon looked at me. "So the little human fool doesn't even speak Twi-leki." He mused. "That makes it easier." Then he spoke in Basic. "So you've come to steal Brejik's swoop engine?"

Mission shouted "He stole it from the Beks, you space slug!"

Kandon looked at her pityingly. "It doesn't matter who made it, or who it belongs to. We have it now, and it will remain here." He looked Carth and I over. "You're obviously not Beks, you don't look stupid enough. Since you're not a member of that pathetic old man's gang, I can do business with you."

"You're right, I am not a Bek." I said.

"Then you must be a mercenary down on her luck. Luck I can change with a word." He looked at my face, thinking perhaps that I was considering his offer. "Gadon is old news. He is blind in more ways than one. Brejik is a visionary. He has plans. Once the swoop gangs are his, the Uppercity is next on his agenda. The Sith won't be here forever. He has something they want. He has this woman Bastila."

"So he's going to trade her for what? Title to the planet?"

"That is simplistic, but accurate. The Sith are offering a reward of four thousand credits up above even now. If he doesn't succeed, he can still finance the war with that much money."

I shook my head. "Not interested."

"Can I kill them now, Kandon?" The female asked again.

"I think so, my pet."

"Think again." I said in Twi-leki. As they had spoken, I had thumbed out an ion grenade. I flicked it to their feet even as I charged forward.

I felt the shockwave hit me. The woman drew a sword, and I cut her down, spinning to block an attack by Kandon. I kicked him in the chest, feeling ribs give, and cut him down as he tried to breath.

"Remind me never to play Pazaak with you." Mission said.

"Can't stand the game. Life has risks enough without gambling." I walked past the bodies to a safe in the wall. The accelerator was a lump the size of my fists. I slid it into Mission's pack.

"Where are you going?" Carth asked as I headed back the way we came instead of the Lowercity entrance.

I held up the rakghoul serum. "With this Zelka Forn can make enough to stop the rakghoul disease. Besides, I promised to return the journal from Malya."

He shook his head, and followed.

Undercity

We came out at the same place we entered the sewers. We moved toward the village. The gate opened at my shout, and I walked into the village. A couple of people were idling nearby, and I could almost feel the greed they felt for our weapons. But a single glare from Carth sent them packing.

I heard a wail of pain and terror, and looked to the side. Another gate was set there, with a woman standing outside. She shook her head, and walked to the fire she maintained. Something drew me and I walked over to look through the same gate.

Several people were walking aimlessly around in there. They were shivering from fear more than any illness I could see. I started to open it, and the woman leaped up, shouting. "Wait Upworlder! Only a fool would go in there right now!" I lowered my hand, looking at her. "Those are our own people infected with the Rakghoul disease. If they survive it as humans, we let them out, if they do not..." She waved a hand helplessly.

A gong rang, and a few men wandered toward us. They were armed with spears and bows. "This is when I chose for them." The healer said bitterly. "Three are on the edge of the change, and two others could be there by morning." Her face was heartbroken. For a healer to chose the moment of a patient's death!

I fingered my pouch, and drew out the injector of serum. If I could get this to Zelka Forn, I would save thousands, perhaps millions in time.

But they weren't here.

"We took this out of the sewer. A Sith injector with rakghoul serum."

Her eyes widened, and she reached out, taking the device from me. It was made for an emergency injection, and all that was need was to slap it against a leg. She fingered it delicately, then handed it back. "You offer is kind, but too late for them.

"You're just going to let them die?"

"Only a fool would enter that cage right now! If they change while you are in there, you have seconds before the bloodlust!"

I stared at her coldly, and marched to the gate. She caught up with me, trying to hold me back. "Please, listen!" I stopped and her hands dropped. "I see you are a fool, albeit a brave one. Hurry once inside. If one has already begun the change, you might not have those seconds!"

I keyed the door and stepped inside. There were five people in the cage, all in their own world of misery. I walked up to each, and the injector hissed. As I came up to the last, She spun, growling. Her skin had grayed with the disease, and pustules had formed across her face. She gave a howl, and leaped at me.

I fell backwards, my feet pushing into her stomach, and threw her over me. I rolled up, dropping the injector, and drew. She charged back, and I thrust through her chest. Her hands touched the shaft as if she didn't believe it, then she looked at me with a glimmer understanding in her eyes. "Thank you." She whispered, falling back dead.

As I walked toward the door one of the first I had injected was staggering toward me. I went on guard, but she fell to her knees. "The drug you gave me. I can feel it burning the disease away!" She looked at me with wonder. "Thank you!"

The crowd standing outside the cage was silent as I stepped back out. The healer came to me, tears in her eyes. I patted her on the shoulder. The crowd broke leaving me a path to walk out. Hands reached out tentatively, touching my arm or shoulder. A man held his child up as if it were a parade.

Rukil was seated by his fire, eating a bowl of stew. My stomach roiled at the thoughts of what they had to use as ingredients. He saw me and stopped chewing, his mouth open in astonishment. "You have returned Upworlder. Did you find my apprentice?"

Silently I drew out the notebook. "Malya died before she could reach the sewers."

He looked destroyed by that simple statement. "It was as I feared. She has joined those that have searched for the way to the Promised Land." He looked at me. "But even her death now gives me hope. For you went out of your way to find her, and out of your way to tell me." He caught my hand. "You are the one foretold. You are to be the beacon that guides our path to the Promised Land!"

"I don't even know _what _is it let alone where!" I growled in exasperation.

"Listen then, guiding spirit. Above us is the city of Taris, so great that it covers the entire continent! There is no land to grow food on; every morsel comes from the sea. Kelp, fish, even plankton feed the people above.

"But man is foolish. They dumped their sewage and waste into that ocean. A century ago, the rising levels of pollution caused a great famine. The mighty in their towers quaked, because the city is so vast, the population is only a day from starvation at the best of times. "In their terror, the rich hoarded, and the poor starved. Men ate men to live."

"From what I have seen of Taris, things haven't changed that much." Carth said. "Just now the people of the Uppercity are almost as bad off as the poor were then."

Rukil nodded. "But the poor rose up in their masses, and civil war engulfed the world. Millions died. Whole sections of the city were laid waste as people fought just for the food that would go into their mouths!

"The rich were victorious in the end. Thousands were captured, but the jails could not hold them all, and people were sickened by the death toll. The leaders then decided to remove the problem by banishing those survivors to the Undercity." He waved at the few remaining people. "And that practice continues to this day. Many brave people were cast out, among them my grandfather Orol and my father Marosi. Along with them went their families to the youngest child."

"Not surprising." Mission snorted. "Those nobles would stuff their own mothers down here if it meant more for them."

"But not long after our exile, a man came. He was not banished, was not sent, but fled to us. He spoke with my grandfather and father, telling them a secret so great that his very life would have been forfeit if he had told it up above. He had been the head of a project on a distant island. A wiser man among the rich had funded a settlement using wiser and more efficient ways of producing food. There were few people, and droids had been built to work the fields and tend the vines. Contact had been lost during the war, and the wise rich man had died telling no one. The wise man had assured that the settlement would be unnoticeable, so it had survived untouched.

"But it's existence was discovered. The rich had merely seen it as more for them to take. They took the project head and tortured him to reveal the way to this Eden, but they had failed. After terrible tortures, the project head had escaped and come down here. He had given my grandfather Orol information, but the rakghoul disease was rampant then, and the walls did not yet exist. He was killed in an attack, leaving them with hope, a few clues, and nothing else.

"They began searching the Undercity for the way, for the man had sworn it was in this area before his death. Gendar's grandfather started the construction of the walls that now surround us, calling for all to forget about the visions of a madman, and try to live as best we can.

"One day Orol did not return, and my father Malosi despaired, but he taught me all he knew, and soon went to follow. That was eighty years ago."

"Sounds like a myth to me." Carth said apologetically. "Something to give people hope to balance the despair."

Rukil bowed his head. "That may be true. But I gathered clues. My legs were badly broken when I was still young and they never set correctly. " He waved toward Mission. "I had to make do with apprentices, children willing to risk their lives to try to find the journals of my family. My journal has clues, but theirs had much more. With them, I could find the way. So I sent them into the darkness, and they didn't return. Malya was the last. I know Shaleena would have been willing if she were not so sickly. Soon I shall die, and the journals of those lost will never be recovered."

I reached into my pack and drew out the notebooks. He stared at me as I set them in his withered hands.

He opened one to the back, then flipped a dozen pages forward. He read avidly, then set it down and picked up the other, repeating the process. "The answer! An tram line leading to a passage. A way that no one had even imagined! But how can we find the entrance?"

"We already did." Mission said. She tapped one book. "We found this ledger right outside the door."

Rukil looked around. Gendar, I must get this to Gendar."

I looked around. Gendar was a distance away. "Carth, help me carry him."

I found I didn't need his assistance. Rukil was old and frail, and weighed not much more than a child. I held him in my arms, and we walked across the encampment.

Gendar grunted at our approach, but as Rukil showed him what the books said, Mission showed him the map of the Sewers, he became excited. "It will take us weeks, even months to get there! But it is a better place than this. You." He pointed at Carth. "Find Shaleena, tell her to get the council together. You." He pointed at Mission. "Bring Kudra the healer. You." He pointed at me. "Get Igear and bring him. We must see what we have to start with." He looked at Rukil. "You have saved us, old man." He said gently. "As many times as I have called you fool, as many times as father and grandfather did, you have saved us anyway." He patted the old man, and ran off.

I went to roust Igear from his tent. He grumbled at being woken up, but when I told him why, his complaints faded.

We returned to the tent, where Rukil still sat with his eyes closed. He had a curiously satisfied expression on his face. I bent down and touched him.

"I don't know why this is so important, Gendar." A large man growled as they came back. "If Rukil is telling tales again, I'll kill him."

"Too late for that." I answered. They looked at the body with dismay. "He gave his life to keep the story alive. His grandfather his father his apprentices, gave their lives to find the way to this promised land, and you complain about your sleep?" I glared at them. "What good was their sacrifice if the going may be too hard on you? Stay here for all I care, rot in this hell with no way out. Or take the one offered!"

The man dug his toe into the ground in embarrassment. He was large but at the moment, he was a child being lectured by his mother.

"She's right. If a good life is too much for your sleep to bear, then go." Gendar said.

He grumbled, but didn't leave. I lifted Rukil's corpse.

"Where are you going with him?" Someone asked.

"Gather wood."


	6. Taris 4: Rescue

Questions, comments, concerns?

Carth

The villagers built a pyre, and Danika held the dead man until they had completed it. She laid him gently on it, then lit the bonfire. Everyone stood silent as the flames leaped up, then went back to their tasks. Danika merely stood and watched until it was embers.

She turned, and Igear came running up. "My stock weighs too much, but there's a lot of things in it we need. This however, is too much extra, and no one can use it anyway." He thrust the bundle into her hands, and ran back to his duty.

It was a set of Echani battle armor. She held it lovingly, then drew Mission aside. They took over an unoccupied tent, then stepped back out. Danika wore the battle armor, looking very comfortable. Mission wore the light fiber armor, and while she would get used to it, she looked uncomfortable.

Danika led us across the encampment to where Gendar sat. Men and women taking notes surrounded him. The Outcasts were balancing what they needed against what they had.

"I'm still worried about Rakghouls." One said. "According to these records Orol made, there are supposed to be a number of areas where they congregate."

"If you can give me a few hours, I can correct that." Danika said. They looked at her skeptically.

"She is the one that cured our own sick." Kudra said. "Went into the cage to administer it as well."

"There is not enough left to inoculate you all. But I know a man in the Uppercity that wants this serum not for himself, but for everyone who has the disease." Danika said. "I will make it my price for giving it to him. What I need is an accurate count of how many doses he must give."

The count came to 73. Danika led us to the elevator, and we rode back up to the Lowercity. Mission was sent to check on Zaalbar, and I went on with Danika.

We walked across the Uppercity, and reached the clinic. Zelka Forn looked up as if he had never left. Danika walked up to him. "I have a sample of the rakghoul serum for you. But I want something in return."

He looked wary. "Go on."

"The people of the Undercity need it more desperately than any, but they can't pay even the little you would ask. I want you to make up enough for the entire village, 73 souls. I want it given to them. Not paid for."

Forn almost cried. "And I thought you wanted money!' He leaped up, hugging Danika. She looked surprised and uncomfortable. "I promise on my own soul that I will deliver it personally." He took the sample. "It will take half an hour to set up the system, but then I will have enough for just them in less than four hours! I'll send it with Gurney-"

"Maybe you should chose someone else." I said.

"Gurney wanted us to give it to him. Davik wants the serum first." Danika added.

"Davik!" Forn almost spat. "I'll fire that worthless-"

Danika reached up, touching her finger to his lips. "If it weren't for those you tend," she nodded toward the lab, "I would have told you earlier. He might not get the money from Davik, but he would probably be satisfied with what the Sith would pay."

He sighed. "You're right. Well, I have contacts with the Hidden Beks, they can get the serum down there. They owe me."

I smiled. "Doesn't everyone have the Beks on their side?" Forn returned the smile.

"I have little I can pay you-"

I named my price, Zelka." Danika said. "You met it. I am satisfied with my reward." She paused, then took out the sprig of the plant she had collected. "While you're at it, check this out. The rakghouls we saw down below were attracted to this plant for some reason. She turned, walking out.

Gurney came after. "You could have had it all, woman!"

Danika turned, and I could feel the fury emanating from her. Then suddenly it was gone. She looked at him calmly. How did she do it? How did a mere girl in her twenties learn or master such control? Take her emotions and lock them away like this? "I was rewarded. In ways you wouldn't begin to understand. Oh, and the injured back there." She stepped closer, and suddenly had Gurney by the throat. "If the Sith come here to get them, I will assume you told them. If that happens, you will beg to die before I'm done. Is that clear"

Gurney gurgled, nodding frantically. She threw him aside, and walked out.

We walked toward the North city again. "Carth, I want to continue our discussion."

"What, you can't stop arguing with me?"

She caught my arm, spinning me to face her. "Why can't you trust me?"

"Why does it matter? Why not just let it be? I don't trust easily. Leave it at that."

"I can't leave it at that Carth." She snapped. "I'm fighting this entire planet and I have mister 'I can't trust so leave it at that' at my back? Why don't I feel comfortable with that?"

"Damn it, I see I'm not going to get any rest until I spill it, right? You want to know why I don't trust anyone? All right. Two years ago, the Mandalorian war was over, Revan and Malak were heroes! I was proud to have served under them.

"Then they changed. They attacked the Republic with the very fleets they had led. Nobody knew what to think especially not me!" I was caught in those memories, reliving all of that. "Our heroes had become our mortal foe, Jedi had become Sith. If you can't even trust the Jedi to live up to their ideals, who can you trust?"

"What do I have to do with Revan and Malak?" She asked.

"That's not what I mean. It's..." I sighed. "Not all of those that went over to the Sith were Jedi. The Jedi that betrayed that trust, that became Sith deserve to die for what they have done. But the officers and men that joined them the ones who turned their backs on the Republic are worse. They can't blame the 'Dark side' of the Force." I used my fingers to make quotes. "They did it for the glory, or the bloodlust or whatever reason their minds created to rationalize it. They deserve no mercy."

"You say that with such... hatred."

I shrugged. My outburst had surprised even me. "I know. I should apologize to you. I've become accustomed to expecting the worst from people and you got caught in the blast radius. Just leave it for a while, okay?"

She nodded sharply and we continued walking

Beks

Danika

We threaded our way back to the Hidden Bek base. Everyone was there to greet us, and Gadon held up the swoop engine accelerator to a roaring cheer. He handed it to an Ithorian who immediately hurried off to install it.

"I was beginning to worry. My mechanics need time to install the accelerator, and the race is tomorrow morning."

I had lost track of time, and was deathly tired. "I've fulfilled my end of the bargain, Gadon. All you have to do is your own part."

"I'm a man of my word. I've already registered you as a Bek rider. And I've just decided that I'm going one better. Since you have to ride, I'm going to assign the bike with the prototype accelerator to you!"

"Gadon are you serious? We need our best ride on that bike in order to win!" Zaedra cried. But her words rang false.

"Why are you doing this, Gadon? The truth, please."

"Put that way, how can I refuse? The accelerator has never been tested, and we won't have time now. The designer," he waved after the Ithorian "tells me there is a chance it will explode if it overheats. I can't ask one of my people to risk his life on a chance like that.

"If you can complete the course without getting killed, you win, and Bastila is free. If you fail?" He shrugged. "Bastila still goes free if one of our other riders wins."

I shook my head, smiling slightly. "Sounds like you win either way."

"You don't rise to command a swoop gang without knowing all the angles." He agreed.

"Danika-" Carth started to speak, but I held up my hand. I had already risked my life to save her once. "I agree."

"You and your friend can stay here tonight. They're going to work through the night to install the accelerator, so unfortunately, you won't have time to practice. But I have good instincts. You have the lean look of a Swoop racer to me. Just relax, and we'll take you to the track in the morning."

I nodded, and wandered off. There was a cantina, and after getting something to eat and drink, I left. The noise and music was grating. I heard a voice in another room, and wandered toward it. Zaalbar was leaning against a box, and Mission was hovering like a persistent fly. "Big Z we have got to do something about your breath. I didn't want to say anything before but it's worse than usual, which is hard to believe. In fact it has been pretty rancid since we rescued you from those Gamorreans. What did they feed you buddy?"

He sighed. "They didn't Mission. I wasn't a guest, I was a prisoner. As long as I lived to be sold, they didn't seem to care."

"That must have been horrible! I know how frustrated you get when you don't have your eight square meals a day. I'm surprised you didn't faint from hunger."

He knew she was joking, but wasn't in the mood to return the favor. "I did take a chunk out of one of them, but it tasted bad so I spat it out."

"Ewww! No wonder your breath smells so bad! Considering the way Gamorreans smell, I don't want to even imagine what they taste like! I'll just have to get a toothbrush to clean those choppers of yours."

He caught her arm when she started to stand. "Wookiees don't brush their teeth, Mission. It just is not done. What other humiliations do you have in store for me? A comb?"

"Okay! Relax! Sheesh, try to make a helpful suggestion. I'd just suggest the next time you stay away from something smart enough to lock you in a cage." She looked at her friend and I saw a devilish glint in her eyes. "Don't take this the wrong way, but you're starting to look a little scruffy."

"Scruffy!" He was indignant. "What are you suggesting! A bath?"

"No." She waved her hands in negation. "I remember how well that went over the last time. But your fur is getting tangles, and the gray is starting to show through."

"You're making this up! I groom every day! My fur is NOT tangled, and I am not going gray!"

"Hey it's not like it's something I can't fix! You know, a little trim, a splash of coloring, and you'll be the best looking Wookiee on the planet! Maybe a nice suit of-"

"You do not trim a Wookiee! You do not color a Wookiee's fur. And you most certainly do not dress a Wookiee!"

"I know but you'll start a trend! Designers will want to make just the right stuff to show off your fur-"

"Enough!"

"I think he looks fine." They looked to me. "Zaalbar, how are you?"

"Tired, and there is still pain." He said. "But a doctor in the Uppercity doesn't care that I am a Wookiee."

"Zelka Forn."

"Yes. He put me in a Bacta tank for several hours and I'm fine now."

"Good. Tomorrow will be a busy day."

"Yes. Maybe I should go down to the garage. Roomba is a good mechanic, and I know he designed that accelerator, but I think I know a way to tweak it a little more."

"Don't tweak it too much. I'm riding it."

"Then my debt assures that I make sure it will work well."

I waved to him, and found a place to lie down. The hum of the place gently put me to sleep.

_She struck down the dark Jedi, and behind her I could see four or five others. All carried lightsabers, blue green violet and her own yellow made a rainbow of death. My vision turned to another figure. This one was robed, hooded, and wore a garish mask._

_ "You cannot win, Revan." The woman said. Her opponent, undaunted by the odds, drew a lightsaber, the deep ruby red lighting the figure._

_ From here I could see beyond Revan. _Leviathan _was there, and suddenly all of her starboard batteries opened fire. The ship rocked, and a blast of energy speared through Revan._

_ Then suddenly I was laying down. The woman staggered forward on her hands and knees, staring at me for some reason._

I didn't get much sleep that night. Every time I went back to sleep, the dream continued. _The Jedi carrying Revan's limp form, running frantically to an escape pod. Through the transparisteel I watched _Behemoth _erupt into fire, then explode. Shrapnel struck the pod, and one of the Jedi screamed that it would not punch out. No beacon, no way to discover where they were. The woman of my dreams calmed the others, then settled into a meditation seat. She closed her eyes._

_ Time passed. Then she heard something. She looked upward, and my view followed. A figure was outside the transparisteel in an EVA suit. The faceplate was silvered. The woman moved over, laying her hand against the plastic as if she could reach through and touch the figure outside-_

I jerked awake as a hand touched my arm. Carth looked at me with worry on his face. Silently he handed me a cup of tea, and I drank it eagerly.

"What time is it?"

"Right before dawn. The Beks are moving the bikes out right now."

I yawned and walked out into the riot of movement. Bikes, each marked in bright colors with the Bek's insignia were being lifted with antigravity units and pushed through a door in the wall. Gadon was standing back. Obviously he had been through this often enough.

"He looked at me as I came up. "Here comes the philanthropist!"

"What?"

"We shipped a load of rakghoul antidote down to the Undercity thanks to you. It interrupted our schedule."

"Sorry."

"Don't be." He huffed. "If the Uppercity nobles had their way, all of my people would have been down there with them ages ago." He smiled. "We help them when we can, but there usually isn't much extra in our margin."

"Hey Gadon, she coming?" A Bek shouted.

"You had better go. You can be disqualified if you show up late."

Swoop Race Track

Swoop racing began long ago among the outlaw gangs. It was first started to keep the gangs from internecine war. The first bikes had been mere frameworks with rudimentary controls, engines and of all things, wheels. The courses were sections of sewer with ceramacrete walls which meant that if you missed a turn you slammed in. Without deflectors, that was lethal

But times changed. Small antigravs were developed. Grav plates to boost acceleration. Deflectors as well. Finally it reached where it was today. A course with grav plates and obstacles spread in a random fashion.

Surprisingly enough as a spectator sport it caught on. Entertainment networks vied to televise the races, and soon everyone who could watched enthralled. It was still a dangerous sport. Death wasn't common but bad accidents were.

On the shuttle to the concourse, I watched the brief history a local entertainment network was running. I knew Gadon Thek had been blinded. What I hadn't known was he had been injured afterward when the antigravs and deflectors had both failed catastrophically just as he reached the finish line. He had won his race, but it had been his last. His time of 34.91 seconds was still a local record.

The Concourse was above the track, and only racers officials and mechanics were allowed onto it. Even then maybe fifty people were there. Most were racers, an average of two from each of the major gangs, one each from the smaller. Twelve mechanics worked on their bikes in areas separated not only by tapes but also by glaring mechanics that watched to make sure there was no sabotage. It was rumored that Gadon's accident had been sabotage, and these days we all knew who was blamed.

The Vulkars had four bikes with riders and mechanics. Brejik was pointed out to me. A tall slim young man, he glared toward the Bek's enclosure

Roomba was working on a bike when I walked into the Bek's enclosure. He looked up, nodded, then made one last check before closing the hood over the engine compartment. "So you're the one that is going to try out my baby. " He said. "Don't worry. Your friend Zaalbar and I were working on the accelerator for hours. Stability shouldn't be a problem, I hope."

He walked over, and touched hands with me. "I'm told you've never done this before. You want me to run over the basics for you?" I nodded. He walked me over beside the bike, pulling up the windscreen so I got a good look. I would have to crouch, leaned forward, and hold two handles that controlled the maneuvering vanes. "All right, first thing to remember is try not to crash into any debris. The course is littered with obstacles. All swoops have dynamic deflector systems, so crashing and getting killed is not a problem with such minor impacts. But anything you run into is going to slow down your run.

"There are grav plates, and before your first run you won't know where they are. If you hit one it will give you a jolt of speed, so hit them when you see them. But don't go whipping across the track if you can avoid it. You lose speed making radical turns and you might put yourself out of position for the next series, understand?

"The accelerator makes the engine run a little hot so you have to watch your engine temperature gauge." He pointed at a gauge on the panel. If it starts running hot you'll hear a warning buzzer. Just change gears when you hear it, or when the needle reaches here," He touched a section of the bar graph, "and you'll do fine."

I took a deep shuddering breath. I had never done anything like this before, and was suddenly terrified. "All right, let's start."

"Hold your jets." He said. "There is more you need to know. Racers go out on the track alone. They've started paired races in some places, even full races with everyone out at the same time in some places, but we're traditionalists here. The times are tallied as they come up, and when the day is over, the best time wins.

"Normally a rider can do as many heats as he wants, but this engine might burn out. If it does, the bike is going to imitate a meteor and blow up. I think we can get four, maybe five runs out of it. So make your runs count. Gadon is depending on you. We're all depending on you. If the Vulkars win, Brejik expects to get a lot of recruits out of this. If they win, the Beks are history."

"I won't let you down."

He grunted. "It sounds like you're are ready as you're going to be. Go talk to the coordinator and get checked in. He'll give you the time to beat and your number in the queue. I'll check the bike after every run, and make any tweaks or adjustments it needs in between." He touched my hand again. The innate honesty of his race made him add. "Don't worry. The accelerator probably won't explode."

The coordinator was a hassled Duros. He nodded to me, and signaled one of the Vulkars to go to the track. Then he turned to me. "You're here to race, right? Now let me see. You're riding for the Beks. I hope they do better than the last few races. I kinda like Gadon." He nodded. "All right, you're in. Ready for a heat?"

"Yes, I am."

"All right, seven minutes. He looked up. "New time to beat is 38.43 seconds. A good time, but not the best I have seen. Have fun and try not to get yourself killed."

"Killed?"

"Yes. We lost one racer today already. You know how you can adjust altitude?" He pulled back as if using reins to stop an animal. "Well one of the Twi-leks did that and hit the upper structure right between two pylons. Dynamic deflector systems can't make your bike a meter shorter you know."

I didn't know and the conversation was bothering me. I walked back to the Bek enclosure, and slipped into a jumpsuit. Roomba nodded that he would watch my gear. I don't know why, considering the friction recently, but everyone was as well armed as their muscles could handle. As I passed the Vulkars I had seen a cage with a woman standing there limply. There was a neural restraint collar around her neck, yet another legacy of slavers the Galaxy over. I walked toward her, and the Vulkar guarding the cage stepped between us. "No one talks to the prize." He growled.

"I wasn't going to talk, just inspecting her."

He growled again, but motioned me forward. I walked over, then stopped stunned. In my dreams since before I had arrived on the _Endar Spire_, I had seen who my mind took to be Kalendra. Then since I had been here on Taris, I had seen a Jedi fighting to defeat Revan.

This was that woman in the flesh. Bastila had been in my dreams!

"Danika Wordweaver. Report to the track." I shook myself, and walked to the coordinator. He signaled me through a door, and I went down to the track. The bike was already there, and I climbed aboard. I flipped a switch, and the bike lifted into the air, floating a meter off the ground. Ahead of me was a series of lights, and I slowed my breathing, watching them The red light lit, then a few seconds later, the amber. My grip tightened, and my finger hooked over the trigger of the accelerator.

Green. I pulled the trigger, and the swoop bike smoothly accelerated. As it did, I saw the temperature gauge climb almost immediately into the red. A grav plate was coming up, and I shifted course as I loosened the trigger, setting it for the next gear. Then I passed the plate. There was a thump, and suddenly I grinned. It was like riding a Tirlat!

I looked along the course, and hit every grave plate I could. Each time, it slammed me forward faster. I saw immediately what the problem was with the accelerator. It needed the governor adjusted to set the gear ratio a bit lower.

I finished the race, and a time flashed on my helmet. I stared at it in shock. 38.01

Beks mobbed me as I climbed out of the racer. The bike was hoisted up, and loaded on a tram to take it to the start line.

Roomba bounced in glee. "Your first time and you beat the set time! They are going to tell stories about this race forever!" He froze. "Damn."

"What? I looked up. The new time was 37.94.

"One of the Vulkars, Redros, beat your time." He bent to the bike, opening the hood. I told him what I had thought, and he nodded, tinkering with it. After a time, he closed the hood. "Done." I nodded, and headed back to the coordinator.

He looked at me. "For someone who has never done this, that was a respectable time."

"My swoop is ready. What is the time to beat?" I asked.

He looked down, then up at the score board which I had ignored. "The Vulkars have set a time few could beat. Thirty-four even."

I gulped. Gadon had set the previous course record at 34.91 at his accident. I couldn't beat that time let alone the new one!

"You can forfeit, if you want."

"No!" I almost shouted. "I have to race."

"Then do you want to put yourself in the queue?"

"Yes."

"All right. Eight minutes."

I nodded and walked back to the Bek enclosure. Roomba merely huffed when he saw the time.

I sat there stunned until they called my name. There had been eight heats since I had noticed the new score, and no one had come even close. In fact the fatalities were now two, with three badly injured.

I went down to the track. The swoop was a Tirlat. How to use that? I

remembered when Kalendra, the _real_ Kalendra had ridden that first time. Perhaps if I used the accelerator only once, to start?

I fit myself onto the bike, leaning forward. In my mind, I could see the grav plate arrangement now, right, then hard left, and then middle, then right- wait a minute. There was a distinct pattern of plates on the right and middle!

I watched the lights, my brain running at hyper speed. No, that was the _first_ part of the course. The middle went center, then far left, then center in a pattern almost impossible to match with the controls. The last part was easier, with staggered plates at either side with a few in the middle.

The light counted down, and as the green flashed, I kissed, then released the accelerator. It punched me forward, but I took off in a deceptively slow glide. I angled to hit the first plate, then to the left sharply to catch the second.

I wasn't swoop riding, I was tirlat riding.

The far right plate kicked me, and I moved the controls delicately, catching middle, then right, then right, then middle, and was honking over sharply to hit the series on the left and center.

The race was over too fast for me to even understand it. Beks grabbed me and held me aloft, shrieking in delight. I was confused until I saw the scoreboard.

32 even.

I went back to the concourse, but it was a foregone conclusion that I was the winner. That didn't stop the Vulkars and others from trying. Most of the scores after mine didn't even threaten the time set by Redros.

Finally they decided to call it a day. The next score after mine was 33.70, also by Redros. The coordinator called the racers together. "With a new track record of 32 seconds even, I give you the winner, Danika Wordweaver!"

I waved at them as I stood there. I had never done this before, and hoped to never have to do it again. But I had won.

"Through your skill, you have made yourself the premier swoop racer of the last two decades. Now to present the victory prizes, I give you Brejik, leader of the Black Vulkars."

Brejik stepped forward. His face was working, and there was a tic under his left eye. He had seen all of his plans collapse because of me, and I was glad I was back in armor with my ritual brand. "Hear me!" He shouted. "Before I present this so-called champion with her prize, there is something that must be said. This rider cheated!"

There was a cry of dismay from the crowd. The coordinator merely looked on. "And how did she cheat?"

"The Beks brought a newly designed accelerator to the field without reporting it, and allowing others to examine it! I hereby withdraw the prize put forward by the Vulkars in protest!"

The coordinator looked at him. It's usually hard to tell what a Duros is thinking, but this one was obviously disgusted. "The accelerator design was brought to the race committee three weeks before you stole it, Brejik. If your racer had used it to win, you would have argued against disqualification, as would any team that raced. As for the prize, you cannot withdraw it merely because you lost. It goes against our sacred traditions!"

"Your traditions mean nothing to me!" Brejik roared back. "I am the wave of the future, not some fool locked on the past! If I want to withdraw this woman, to kill her, or sell her on the slave market, I will do what I please!"

"I think I have a say in that, Brejik." A voice I had heard before said. Bastila looked up, and her smile was cold.

"You can't- It's impossible! You wear a neural disruptor! How could you have worked past that?"

Her smile grew feral. "You underestimate the will of a Jedi, Brejik. A mistake you will not live to repeat!" She reached out, and the Vulkar that had been guarding her was slammed back hard enough to crack his skull. The collar fell from her neck and she moved her hand, and the door opened. Then she bent to pick up the sword from the fallen Vulkar.

"Vulkars, to me!" Brejik shrieked. "Kill the woman, kill the racer. Kill them all!"

I drew, and killed the Vulkar that ran at me, then the melee became general.

Bastila Shan

I had freed myself after much work, but I was not yet safe. The problem I had to face was manifold. The gang had surprised me, and captured me after only a brief struggle. Someone had put the neural disruptor collar on me, and dragged me away.

Picture sitting in a chair, looking out a window in front of you, but your will is paralyzed. You cannot move only watch as life passes by. Thought of action is shunted aside before it reaches your muscles. You still breath eat and excrete because you don't need to think about that, but you can't even complain about the quality of the food.

It had taken me a day to discover exactly how the damnable collar worked, then another to work my way around it. Only a Jedi could have done so. We work on so many levels in comparison to regular people that no one but the Sith had ever bothered to develop such a collar for us.

But once I was physically free, I would have yet another problem. I was being held in a pit, and only let out for feeding and cleaning. Someone had assumed I was important because there were never fewer than five when I was removed, and usually more. I could have dispatched them, true, but I would still have been trapped in a building somewhere on Taris, with many more people between freedom and me.

I was a prize in a swoop race, that much I had learned. Then this morning they had been agitated. Someone had broken into their main base, and razed it. They mounted a guard worthy of a senator to assure this same enemy did not take me.

Ah, the swoop race then was my best chance. While I might still be wearing the collar, once the race was done, they would have to transport me again. That was when I would free myself, when the number of guards was scant, and the space enclosed. I didn't know where I would be going, but I was sure I would find a way off the planet before Darth Malak found me.

But something had gone wrong. Brejik, that stupid little man had screamed that he would withdraw me. I was not going back to that hell!

"I think I have a say in that, Brejik." I said. The look of shock and dismay on his face was priceless.

"You can't- It's impossible! You wear a neural disruptor! How could you have worked past that?"

"You underestimate the will of a Jedi, Brejik. A mistake you will not live to repeat!" I reached out using the force, caught the guard nearest to me, and savagely used that unseen grip to pull him toward me. I overdid it a bit. I used what I might have to shove a landspeeder away from me. The Vulkar slammed back into the cage, and collapsed dead. The door was child's play, and I took the weapon from my first victim.

I immediately saw a problem. As a Jedi I had not handled a sword with a material blade in over a decade. It pulled forward in a disconcerting manner, and when I swung it, the swing went on for quite a distance. Until I was used to it I would be little help.

Instead, I blocked frantically, and watched the woman that had won the race. She was a redhead from Echana if her arms and armor were any indication. She waded into them, and I could see the edge of her mouth in a grin as she did. The spectators were running frantically, the Beks had charged in, and chaos was total. In the midst of that, she danced the dance of death, and was its master. No one I had ever seen moved with such fluid and lethal grace. I despaired for the order for I felt the power of the Force in her every move. What would she have been if we had found her first?

Brejik shoved his way through the press, his eyes lit by insanity. Any grasp he had on reality had been sundered, and now all he wanted was revenge.

"You're mine!" He screamed, raising his sword.

Suddenly he stiffened, and looked at the blade that had transfixed him like a museum specimen. "Mine." He whispered, then he jerked forward. The woman rider was behind him, kicking the body forward as she pulled the blade free. She looked up, then walked toward me.

I was stunned. It wasn't possible! She couldn't be here, fighting with such efficiency! Yet there she was.

I reacted poorly, I will admit. I lied through my teeth. I pointed at Brejik, and his henchmen now dead in windrows around us. Along with the Vulkar and five or six members of other gangs that had joined the fray on his side. But they had paid for that foolishness with their lives. "Maybe the Vulkars will think twice about trying to keep a Jedi prisoner! And as for you, if you think I am willingly going to be a prize in this farce-" I stopped, artfully pretending that I had just recognized her. "Wait, you were on the _Endar Spire_! Yes, I'm sure of it! How did a Republic soldier find herself racing for a common swoop gang?"

She shrugged, and smiled that damnable smile I remembered so well. "It is a long story." Only the voice was different. Softer, more hesitant. As if she was embarrassed.

"Well we don't have time for it right now. We have to get out of here before the Sith arrive to sort out this mess. Is there somewhere safe where we can go?"

Before she could answer, a Bek came running down the concourse. "The Sith were monitoring the swoop race! We have to get out of here now!"

"We have a safe place to go. I was going to take you there after I saved you from Brejik." She said calmly.

"Saved me? Is that what you think happened? Is that why you entered this ridiculous race? Well as a rescue operation, this is one of the worse managed I have ever seen! In case you hadn't noticed I had already freed myself. In fact all things considered, I think it would be fair to say that I saved you! Brejik and his gang would have left you for dead if I hadn't been here!"

She colored, and bit back a retort. "I think we can discuss this later. Carth is waiting for us."

"Carth Onasi! Well I withdraw part of my complaint then. If Carth sent you, he must have had a better plan than something you created!" She merely shook her head. The Beks were ready to leave, and since she had ridden for them, they brought us with them.

Carth

It was panic time by the time Danika and Bastila returned. We had been watching the race until the fight broke out, then the Bek in charge of the video feed told us that the Sith were coming down into the Lowercity in force.

Gadon had decided to take his people into the Undercity for a while to hide out. Danika had told him of the promised land, and Gadon had been intrigued, but I didn't know what to expect out of it. Mission and Zaalbar stayed with us, and Mission led us through a warren of trash chutes and sewer lines until we were back in the Uppercity near our apartment. We went there.

"Bastila! It's good to see you safe! Now we just need to find a way off this rock."

"You mean you don't even have an escape route planned? What have you been doing in all this time?"

"Trying to find and rescue you." Danika said. I could tell she was furious, and I was just glad it wasn't aimed at me this time.

"I see." Bastila commented with all the prim disapproval you would have expected from a teacher in grade school. "Well now that I have been 'freed', I can start assuring that this operation is run properly."

"Now wait a minute, Bastila!" I snarled. "I know you're new at combat, but a good leader doesn't berate her troops just because things aren't as far along as you might like. Don't let your ego get in the way of what we're trying to accomplish, or let it drive you to take charge when you don't know what the hell you're doing!"

She looked as if her wallet had bitten her. "That hardly strikes me as an appropriate way to address your commanding officer, Carth. I am a member of the Jedi order, and this has been my mission, just remember that! My battle meditation has helped the Republic in several battles, and it will serve us here as well!"

"Your abilities might win battles, but it doesn't make you a competent leader! A good leader listens to those below them that have seen more combat than you ever will! Or those that specialize in this form of mayhem!" I waved at Danika.

"Will you both just settle down?" Danika had crossed her arms, and was glaring at us in turn. "This is not helping matters."

"Yes. You are right, of course." Bastila looked to me. "I apologize Carth. You are quite correct that this is her area of expertise, not mine. What do you suggest we do?"

I sighed. I wanted to hit her, but it wouldn't have helped. "First thing, we can't get hung up on who is in charge. I'm a pilot, you have skills only the Jedi have, and Danika can cut her way through any problem. Not to mention that Mission is hell on wheels with a computer, and Zaalbar can fix anything we need fixed. This is a team, Bastila, not some group of raw recruits."

"Well said, Carth. I stand corrected." She cast a glance at Danika, then back at me. "I know there are people itching to escape this planet. Perhaps we can check the Cantinas and see what we might find."

"Sure. That's as good an idea as any." Danika murmured I looked at her worried. She had always been the most gung ho of the crew, and this sudden change bothered me. She looked at Bastila, and flushed.

Bastila sensed it. "Is something wrong? You seem troubled by my appearance."

"Something weird happened before I went to the swoop track. A vision of some kind."

"A vision? A vision of what, pray?" Something about her tone didn't ring true.

"Of you. You were with five others." She closed her eyes. "All Jedi. You faced a Dark Jedi. Revan I think."

"This is strange. Usually such visions are signs of Force sensitivity."

"What does that mean?"

"I really can't explain it. Unless you can feel the Force, and understand the terms, it is like telling a blind man about a rainbow. After all, one vision-"

"It isn't just one vision." Danika bit out. "I had them since the battle of Zanebra. Before I boarded the _Endar Spire_. Here as well."

"It seems you might have some small connection with the Force. It isn't uncommon really. When we first met your own small skills must have fed off mine. It is possible that in the excitement of the aftermath of battles, your own skills allowed you to glimpse parts of my own life."

"As someone I remembered from childhood?" Danika pressed. "Weeks of memories as clear as that window that never happened in truth?"

"I do not fully understand the Force. No one but the Jedi masters do. Once we have escaped, I will take you to them, and you can discover what is happening. However we have more on our plates than I would like to consider. Can we get back to the matter at hand?"

"Right," Danika pushed herself up. "Mission, Zaalbar, stay here. We don't want any incidents we can avoid." She looked at Bastila, then at me. "Are you two coming? Or am I going to do all the work, and you two are going to kibitz from safety?" She flipped something toward Bastila, who caught it instinctively. It was a twin bladed lightsaber. "Yours I believe."

She stormed out before I could answer. Bastila followed, and so did I.

A Twi-lek had stopped Danika outside the door, and was in a conversation with her. Danika signaled for privacy, then when the Twi-lek departed motioned us forward. "Someone named Canderous Ordo. He wants to see me. It seems my swoop bike racing fame intrigues him."

"We really-" Bastila began.

"The Upper level Cantina here in South City is where he wants to meet." She looked at Bastila coolly. "You did say we should check out the cantinas."

Cantina

Danika

I was furious. Someone had messed with my mind after Bastila's rescue, and I didn't know how or why. Her reaction, brushing it off as if it were unimportant bothered me even more. If someone was using the Force, and it wasn't her, who could it be?

Carth wasn't helping. I could see that his mistrust extended far beyond me, and while I felt slightly better about that, the arguments could soon destroy us. I was used to working with a smoothly running team as a soldier. Impediments are dealt with or transferred out at my level or lower, before they could become a danger to others. But here I was technically the low man on the pole.

I could feel their eyes on me as we walked on. The way they had been circling like a pair of female Thorm in a nesting dispute I expected a fight, and as we walked I could overhear it.

"I was wondering Bastila, how were the Vulkars able to capture you after the crash? Were you unconscious?"

"No, I was conscious. But my force powers had been exhausted in the battle for the _Endar Spire_. If I hadn't been using them up until the moment I crashed you may never have gotten off the ship alive." Her voice was low and angry.

"Fair enough." Carth's tone was light, but I could sense him closing for the kill. "But I've seen you Jedi in action before. How did those thugs get past you're lightsaber?" Her answer was too low for me to hear, but Carth repeated it as if it were the punch line of a bad joke. "You lost it? How do you lose a lightsaber?"

"I couldn't find it after the crash. I was looking when the Vulkars surprised me."

"Wait a minute, let me get this straight. You lost your lightsaber and were looking for it, and they surprised you?" He laughed. "I mean, isn't that a violation of the Jedi rules or something?" He laughed, and I was actually glad to hear it. He had been too grim before.

However this wasn't helping. "Leave it be Carth." I said over my shoulder.

Bastila however was defensive. "This is no laughing matter, Carth! My lightsaber must have come free of my belt, fallen under a seat or something. The Vulkars must have found it among the wreckage."

"Hey, don't get mad! I just think it's funny that the hope of the Republic, the great and legendary Bastila would lose her lightsaber and be caught by a group of thugs! When you write this up for the history books, I would suggest you leave that part out."

"I do not consider myself worthy of a legend, Carth. However you are right, there is no need for the Jedi council to know every nuance."

A figure was moving toward me and I recognized Zelka. He was exuberant, and ran up, catching me by the shoulders. "You found it!"

"Found what?" I asked.

"The cause of the rakghoul plague!" He said. "The plant you brought to my lab. It's a specimen of the Koodro bush! The initial victims of the plague were people who had allergic reactions to the pollen!"

"What?" Bastila came forward. He looked at her, but beyond answering her question to me, he ignored her.

"When Taris was settled there was a small primate that was called a Bookri. They tended to get into everything and were noxious in their habits, and finally the government mounted an extermination operation. They've been extinct for about two hundred years. But the Bookri pollinated the Koodro! The plant evolved sufficiently for its pollen to cause the rakghoul disease at first, and being bitten passed it to those not allergic to it! It was nature trying to circumvent an obstacle we created!" He hugged me. "Now all we need to do is find a small animal that isn't noxious to act as a pollinator instead!"

"Then I leave it to you." I said.

"But you deserve credit! I want to report it to the City governor, get you a medal!"

"No." I shook my head. "I did what had to be done, Zelka, that's all. You live here, you've dealt with the plague all your life. You take the credit."

He just stared after me as we walked on.

I could feel Bastila's eyes on me, and I glanced back. I signaled her forward, and motioned for Carth to hang back and give us room.

"What's on your mind, Bastila."

"That incident made me curious. I wanted to know more about what you and Carth have been up to before we joined forces."

"We were looking for you."

"Yes, I realize that. But it was more than a simple search. From what that man said, you also found the cause of a massive plague. Besides, I doubt someone had put up flashing signs with the words 'This way to the Jedi' on them." I chuckled visualizing it. "On top of which you avoided detection by the Sith, discovered my predicament, convinced a swoop gang to sponsor you in the race, won it, and then killed the Vulkar leader in a manner and circumstance that ended the war below. That is quite a resume for just a couple of days."

"I had a lot of help. Carth, Mission, Zaalbar."

"Your modesty does you credit, but your answer does not. While everyone you have mentioned did their part, from what I have seen you were the catalyst that caused the changes needed. When you were chosen to join this mission I don't think any of us expected this much from you. A Jedi could have succeeded of course. " She said it deprecatingly. "But she would have had to draw heavily on the force to succeed as you have."

"I think the Jedi underestimate we poor folk that don't have your abilities." I commented dryly.

"Perhaps." She admitted. "But not all those able to use the force are within the order."

"The Sith."

"Well of course the Sith! But there are those that were never found when they were younger. The ones that show exceptional gifts. Gamblers who are always lucky, racers and pilots who don't fly as much as become part of their vehicle. Entertainers who can sway an audience with just their voice. These are what we call Force-sensitive.

"It is obvious to me that you were working through the Force, or the Force chose you because of your own innate abilities. There is no other answer possible. However I do not know what to make of it. Perhaps if you weren't... I should say, if you were still a child, the Jedi might have offered to train you. But as it is..."

"Can you speak plainly? Of is that against some Jedi rule?"

She flushed. "I have overstepped my authority and upset you as well. Such matters are best left to the Council. For now, let us say that you are gifted. Hopefully between your gifts, my Jedi powers, and the skills of your compatriots, we can win the day."


	7. Taris: Running the Gauntlet

Carth

They stopped talking as we reached the Cantina entrance. A Sith stood outside, and even with his visor, I could feel his glare. Somehow he didn't recognize either Danika or Bastila. That was good because we weren't home free yet.

This was an upscale place, what you would expect in Upper Taris. Soft mood lighting, music that didn't grate on the ears. Not that I liked the music. I was, well, too sweet and sickly. The doorman didn't want to let us in, but the mention of Canderous moved him out of the way. Danika moved through the crowd, then stopped at a table. Seated there was the Mandalorian warrior Canderous.

I respect Mandalorian warriors, and felt it was an honor to have defeated them, but I have never liked them. There are exactly three classes of citizen among the Mandalorians. Leader, warrior, and everyone else. I had seen the carnage they had dealt on worlds, and it came because the people they were fighting had never grasped that. A Leader can give an order, and if it is not obeyed, the one who receives it can be killed without compunction. Only those gifted in the arts of war or science ever reach that pinnacle. Warriors can give an order, and again it must be obeyed. Failure to do so again means your death. But the people they conquered resisted. Some very well. The Cathar race comes to mind. In those cases the ones who fought them were honored.

One Cathar male killed 29 Mandalorian warriors before he was caught. They executed him, but then buried him in their own graveyard with a Mandalorian marker with his kills listed. What they could not abide was incompetent or passive resistance. Resistance was dealt with harshly. Not with casual brutality, for nothing the Mandalorians do is ever casual. But with swift and violent retribution.

As much as we used propaganda highlighting their brutality, the Mandalorians had fought a clean war by their lights. Almost perfectly clean by our own. Of the fifty or so 'atrocities' that we screamed at only about six or seven were true. Our record wasn't that clean.

Those we captured during the Mandalorian Wars were confused by our reactions. The servant had been given an order and questioned it! The people had seen what happened to those who resisted, but they continued to resist! It wasn't until Revan and Malak with the Jedi that had followed them that things changed. The Mandalorians had been soundly beaten, but Revan had dealt with them as a Mandalorian would. They had respected her for that.

Canderous motioned toward the seats, and we sat. He waved, and drinks arrived. Danika sipped her tea, and watched him.

"I saw your runs in the swoop race. Very impressive for a first time rider. I was even more impressed by what was shown of the fight before transmission was cut. You seem like someone who gets results regardless. I can use someone like you."

"If I want to be used, perhaps."

"Fair enough. I work for Davik Kang and the Exchange. The hours aren't great, but they offered a fortune for my services, and we Mandalorian Mercenaries are in high demand. But lately, the work has become boring and pointless. He's been using me as if I was a common thug."

I nodded. Mandalorians don't mind scut work, but disrespecting them can be deadly.

"But until this blockade is lifted, I can't get off this rock. So I decided that when my chance came, I would get out of here, and you're the key."

Danika nodded. "And how you expect to do this?"

"I've got a plan to get out of here through the blockade but I need someone I'm sure can do their part to help."

"Careful." I said. "Mercenaries aren't known for their consciences. He might be baiting a trap, or setting you up for a fall."

Canderous looked at me, measuring me in an instant. "I'm talking with her, not you." Then he turned back to Danika. "I saw you win the swoop race, and I figured, anyone crazy enough to take the chances you did might be willing to do something even crazier, but with a bigger payoff. Something like breaking into the Military base." He watched us, but his eyes were locked on Danika's face, judging her reaction.

"You have my attention." She said.

He relaxed incrementally. "What I need is for someone to get the Sith launch codes from the base. Without them the fleet above will blow any ship trying to leave the atmosphere away. With them..."

"Why should I help you? If I had those codes I could take them, steal a ship and be out of here myself." Danika replied.

"I've seen the ships here. The really good ones have been confiscated by the Sith. But there's a ship they don't know about. I can get us out of here on the _Ebon Hawk_."

"A J class. Big deal." I commented.

"A J class with the Mod 4 upgrades, and Mark 19s installed." Canderous corrected.

I was shocked and excited at that. The Mod 4 upgrades made it faster with heavier armor and shields. The Mark 19s were blaster cannon used on the newer corvettes! They could punch out even an Interdictor class cruiser if you were very lucky and very close. He grinned evilly at the look on my face. "Good enough for you, flyboy?"

"And how are you going to manage stealing his ship right under his nose?" Danika pressed.

"Not so fast, kid. Bring me the codes, and I will tell you the rest of it."

"How am I supposed to get into the Base?" She asked. "The door obviously has encryption to stop me. Not to mention whatever guards are inside."

"Haven't been paying attention to the news, have you? The Sith Governor launched a major operation to find Bastila when she was seen at the track." He glanced at the woman, then back to Danika. "Something like a thousand troops more came down from the fleet and the guard units in the base were drawn down to minimum to do it.

"As it is, they're finding it more difficult than they imagined. The bike gangs have buried the hatchet right in the nearest Sith skull. They've retreated into the Undercity and are tearing them up with ambushes and lightning raids by armed bikes. If fifty men come out of there alive, I'll be surprised. As for the encryptions, I have just what you need. Davik wants the codes too, and he commissioned a droid from the shop across from the elevator in South City. Janice Nall is a Twi-lek, but she's a wizard with custom droid modification. Just tell her I sent you and pay for the droid."

"Won't Davik be upset when the droid doesn't go to him?"

"Why? Who do you think he put in charge of the commission?" He motioned toward himself. "Davik commissioned it, but I was the one who talked to Janice. He won't care who picks it up as long as the launch codes come his way. But I'm known to the Upper city, and if I hit the base, the Sith will send an army down to take out Davik's estates. Or blow it from orbit. I need you."

"I sense no deception from him, which is surprising." Bastila mused. "This may be exactly what we need."

"Are you in?" Danika nodded. He handed over a credit ship. "Then meet me at Jayvar's Cantina down in the Lowercity when you have the codes." He tossed a coin on the table, and left.

Danika

Break into a base, fight who knows how many guards, find the launch codes, then get into the Lowercity past yet more guards in the midst of a serious battle? Sure no problem.

It seemed to be my day for impossible missions.

I walked back toward the apartment. I had to leave someone behind, but who? I was dealing with two serious prima donnas here.

I decided I would leave Carth. He could inform the others of what we were doing, and at least he and Mission got along. I signaled for him to move closer, and gave him his instructions. He looked pensive. Probably wanted to keep his eye on me even now. "Maybe we should finish our discussion."

He stiffened. "I said I didn't want to talk about it."

"Well I do."

"Listen sister, just because were working together doesn't mean you get to poke and prod at me every chance you get!"

"So we have another problem?"

"Blast it, you are the most stubborn and frustrating woman I have ever met!"

"I'm frustrating? Look who's talking!"

"What? Me? What did I do?"

"What, you stepped out for a drink and sandwiches for the last few days? Where have you been that you don't remember all the crap I've had to take from you?"

"Okay, I give up. I'll talk!" I sighed, and inside of me I felt a pustule of hate burst. "I could really use someone to talk to about it." She watched me silently. "When I think of everyone who betrayed us, the one that stands out above all the others is Saul."

"Saul? You say that name like I should know it."

"You don't? I thought everyone did. Saul Karath is the Admiral commanding the entire Sith fleet now. He's the reason Malak has done so well since Revan died.

"But he didn't start there. He was the first officer I reported to back when I joined during the Mandalorian wars. He was only the exec of a Frigate then, an old man who had been passed over because he didn't have the right connections, but he was going up the promotion ladder fast since the Mandalorian wars started. He took a green kid under his wing, and taught me everything I know about how to fight. When he transferred to his own ship, he took me along. Then it was Admiral Karath, and I was still there, now as command pilot for his ship. I looked up to him, and he betrayed me. He's up there now with that very ship. _Leviathan_.

"I was transferred home for a while there. Revan and Malak had taken the fleet out on a deep space recon, looking for any remaining Mandalorian holdouts. Three years ago they came home.

"He approached me right before he went over. I had just been recalled because of the first Sith attacks. He talked about how the Republic was weak, how it was going to fall unless the strong took the lead. He told me that if it came to that fight, I should be on the winning side." I shrugged. "I didn't think about it until later, but he was sounding out a lot of the officers aboard. He was trying to get me to join him. Me, I was home, I was happy, and I was sick of fighting. We fought, he left. That was the last time I saw him."

"But you didn't think he would betray the Republic."

"Saul was my mentor. Before the Jedi joined us he was in the front of every battle, and he brought us through even when it looked hopeless. After all the men that had died under his command, all of the battles he had won, I couldn't see him turning his back on what he had stood for.

"He did though. Worse yet he gave them the access codes to the planetary shield grid. I was assigned to the task force there, and saw the waves of bombers and fighters coming in unnoticed and unopposed when we arrived. I knew then how they had pulled it off. We fought, and lost." I felt my eyes burn. "I could have saved them if I had killed Saul before he betrayed us, before he betrayed me! But I didn't."

"So you blame yourself for trusting your friend."

"I blame Saul! I was... I was naive. I ignored the danger such a man could be on the other side. He nearly destroyed us all.

"I've fought him for years now. If I ever meet him face to face again I am going to make him regret what he's done with his dying breath."

"That isn't all."

"It is for now."

We reached the apartment. I made sure Carth had his communicator on, and Bastila and I left again. We went to South City. The droid shop was where I had been told it was, and I entered. There was the smell of burning insulation, and A Twi-lek was cursing in her own language behind a counter.

I called her, and she came out. "Canderous sent me!"

"Ah! For the little droid." She went into the back, and a little wheeled astromech droid rolled out. "As specified, the droid is a modified T3 astromech, but it has several features. Weapons!" A blaster popped out of a panel in it's front. Two other tubes lifted one to either side of its dome. "A sonic disruptor and a stun beam. All I had for installed weaponry unfortunately. It also has a full security and encryption package as requested."

"Good. How much."

"Two thousand."

I pulled out the credit chip, dropping it into her palm. "Hey, big spender! Well, he's all yours. T3M4, go with her."

The droid whistled, dome turning to lock onto my face. It beeped quizzically at me. Janice handed me a small com screen. "I didn't install voice circuits, but you can read what he says here. It attaches on the wrist."

I looked at the screen

Question; Can you get me out of this shop before she thinks of more modifications

"I laughed. "Let's go T3."

He whistled. Good. finally somewhere else

Bastila and I walked across the concourse past the elevator that led down to Bek territory. It opened, and half a dozen wounded were carried out. We followed as those were taken to a shuttle that then lifted off. The battle was still raging down below.

The door to the base was unguarded, and I leaned against the wall beside it. Watching the shuttle take off. Another was coming down to take its place. "T3, Open this door."

He bleeped at me, rolling forward. An arm extended, and he stretched his frame upward until it linked to the lock plate. There was a clicking sound, and the arm retracted, the door opening. I walked past him into the elevator.

There was a Twi-lek at the receptionist's desk, and her eyes widened when she saw us. "You're not supposed to be here!" She looked at the desk, probably at an alarm button.

"Wait, you really don't want to be here in the next few minutes. Maybe you can take a lunch break?" I flashed a 50-credit coin.

She grinned. "As long as you let me out of here before all hell breaks loose!" I flipped her the coin, and she took off running.

"T3!" The little droid rolled forward, and inserted the arm into a slot. I watched the screen.

Four concentrations of life forms. War droids patrolling halls. Heavy combat droid in the elevator. Blaster turrets in elevator and armory

"Can you gas them?" I asked.

Negative. However two concentrations of guards are in rooms where I can blow access panels and remove them

"Do it."

Complying. Done

"Now take the droids down."

Query, take down?

"Deactivate."

Understood. War droids in diagnostic cycle. Will remain for ten minutes. Heavy combat droid systems cannot be remotely accessed, Turrets have been shut down

"Now download a base schematic."

He did so, and I checked the screen. There were four Sith in a room right off the reception area, five in a control room. Red markers noted the presence of light blaster turrets now deactivated.

I motioned for Bastila to follow, and ran to the door. It opened, and we were among the enemy. I cut one down, turned to another, and hacked him down as well. Bastila had shoved the officer in uniform into a console, and he whimpered as his back broke. T3 calmly shot the last one.

I put the officer out of his misery, and we ran down the hall. It opened into a vaguely triangular room. There were restraint fields to the side, and the occupied one caught my eye. "You?"

The Duros looked at me. "You remember me?"

"I remember a brave soul that hid bodies so they wouldn't be discovered."

"Not well enough. I was captured last night."

"Can we free you?"

"The panel on the wall controled the cage. I ran over, and released the field. As it came down, he stumbled out, then ran for the entrance.

There were five guards in the section to our left, and I led us that way because I didn't want to have to fight every Sith on the planet to escape. The hall opened into a control room, and I froze as I saw a mine laid at the threshold. But T3 rolled forward, and deactivated it. I ran forward toward the center where four people worked at the consoles. Bastila followed me as T3 shot the technician.

One of the armored guards reached for his weapons, and was down as I continued my rampage. The other went down, then I turned. Bastila had taken the other two. I motioned and we hurried to the room we had just left to go the other direction. At the end of the hall, I opened the door, then ducked instinctively. The heavy attack droid had been waiting, and only my reaction had saved my life. Bastila reached out, and the droid arched as electricity ran wild in it. Then it sagged and collapsed.

I motioned and we went on into the elevator. It was a short trip down, and I readied my equipment as it did. Then it opened into a room. A man in Sith armor, bald head gleaming turned, glaring at us, who dares..." He stared at Bastila, then at me with increasing interest. "So there were two of your kind, Bastila. Your master, perhaps?" He drew. "It doesn't matter, you're both dead." He stepped forward getting a good look, then froze staring at me. "You!" Then he screamed, charging. I felt something hit me in the chest, and somehow stayed on my feet. I blocked his cut, then Bastila slammed him against a wall, cutting him in half before he could fall to the ground.

"Me?" I asked.

"They recognized you from the race obviously." Bastila suggested.

We searched the room, finally finding the pad with the launch codes. With our timer running down, I led a frantic run back out of the base.

T3 had not been able to extend the cycle, so we only had a couple of minutes. I ran down the promenade to the elevator.

"No civilians-" The guard started and I rammed the authorization papers I had kept into his face. "Oh, sorry. I didn't know they had extended your contracts." I walked past him, and opened the door. As the elevator dropped I heard a wailing alarm. I keyed my communicator. "Carth!"

"Go ahead."

"The fat is in the fire. We have really heavy crap coming down in the next few minutes. Ready to move?"

"Yeah. Mission got into the local database, and we have a shuttle prepped and ready to launch."

"I'm enroute to our meeting with Canderous. Lift off and get ready to head toward Davik's estate."

"You mean the big area marked fatal to all incursions?" Mission asked from the background.

"Well it's either that or surrender."

"I take your point." Mission replied.

The area at the base of the elevator was packed with wounded not yet transported. I threaded my way through them, and turned, headed for the cantina. Bastila followed, eyes downcast. Still no one noticed her. I nodded to the doorman, and entered the Cantina.

Bastila

When the Sith apprentice had shouted, I was worried. He tried to throw us back with the Force, but she resisted it well, and I had been ready for it.

I dealt with him swiftly, and while my answer was lame, she seemed to accept it. We hurried through the maze of paths and finally entered the Lowercity cantina. It was not even close to being as clean as the one above, but the fighting seemed to have kept it busy. Danika moved through the crowd, and there was Canderous.

He tapped his earpiece, grinning. "Some piece of work you did girl. Sure you weren't born among the Mando'a?"

"That I am sure of." She replied. "All right, we have the codes, now what?"

"We walk into Davik's place, take it down, and grab the ship."

"Is that all?" She asked aghast. "Probably the most heavily fortified place on the planet and he's going to just let us walk in?"

"Davik is always looking for quality talent. As you saw down in the Wasteland, there isn't much to be had on this backwater flyspeck. That was why he hired me. But he hired some bounty hunter-"

"Calo Nord."

"That's him. He thinks that because he kills retail, he's as good as one of my people. Better than me!" He snarled. "I'd like to see a hundred of his kind take on just one battle phalanx of our recruits!" He snarled, then the emotion was gone. "He watched the swoop race, and thought you looked like a good candidate, especially after the altercation with the Vulkars. He said that if I could contact you, he wanted to offer you a job. I'm just following orders. The way he works he'll offer for you to be his guest while he does a background check. If you clear, he hires you. If you don't." He flicked his thumb across his neck.

"That might actually work. What about my friends?" I motioned upward.

"They can fly in after we get there. The shield extends to the elevators and landing bay. Once they come down, I can transmit the code to open them from outside. Your friends can land right on the pad beside the _Ebon Hawk_."

Danika nodded. "All right, I'm in. When do we go?"

"Right now. I have a skimmer waiting." He looked at me. "But I bring you along and he's going to be thinking credits big time. The reward has been jumped to 10,000 credits. You had better stay here."

"But-"

"No. Danika shook her head. She touched the com on her wrist. "Carth?"

"We're airborne. Headed for the estate."

"Change of plans. You have to pick up Bastila. " I considered. "The apartments at the West end of the promenade here. Home in on her com unit."

"Next time let's schedule all the stops first." He laughed "Mission forgot to go to the bathroom before we left." I heard Mission squeal at the comment in the background.

"Good. Listen in on my unit after picking up Bastila. Canderous is going to give us the code for Davik's defensive shields."

"Better and better. I'll be there."

They led me to the apartment complex, and Canderous blew out the window with his heavy blaster. A shuttle dropped down, and I could see Carth coolly gauging the distance. The hatch opened, and Zaalbar was standing there, waving. I leaped, and he caught me, dragging me aboard.

The last thing I saw was that frail form waving wordlessly once before she disappeared back into the structure.

Estate

The run to the estate didn't take that long. Canderous wasn't the kind for unnecessary talk. He just sat there as the automated system took us to our destination. T3 had come with us, and he bleeped to himself. I looked at the screen.

Where do I get my discharge from this crazy outfit? I laughed, rubbing my hand across the dome. He burbled, and I looked at the screen again. OH baby! Right on the sensor!

"Behave." I said.

The screen bleeped, and an automated voice said, "Inbound skimmer, state your authorization or be fired on."

"Now." He whispered leaning forward. "Authorization 9941210."

I had keyed my com, and it tingled as Carth sent back a silent acknowledgment. The skimmer lifted, and entered a tower near the Western extreme of the city. It dropped to the deck, and powered down. We stepped out, passed through a door, and into a hall. Davik stood there. He was a chubby man in his fifties, hair slicked down. He wore what looked like a suit of ranar-silk. "Well, if it isn't the best swoop rider in twenty years!' He said. He came forward, shaking my hand firmly. "I've seen what you can do and I am impressed."

A man entered from behind Davik and I looked at him. Calo Nord. "Well, you usually work solo Canderous. Getting soft in your old age? Or did her face turn your head?"

"Watch your mouth, Calo." Canderous gritted out. "You may be the newest hound in the pack but you're not the top dog while I'm still here."

"Guys, let it go. I can't stand to see my two best men fighting." He gave me a wry look as if to say 'boys!' "So you decided to accept my offer?"

"Let's just say your offer intrigued me." I replied.

"Fair enough. The Exchange is always looking for new talent. You could go far in the organization if you live up to expectations." He looked at Canderous. "With Canderous' recommendation and verification that you don't really work for some law enforcement organization, you could easily become a valued member of the Exchange. There are those that would kill their mothers for such an offer."

"The offer was interesting enough that I am here, Davik."

"Well come along and I'll show you around." He motioned for me to walk beside him, leaving Canderous and Calo to follow. He did have a big operation. A warehouse full of goods from all over the galaxy, a room filled with guards and a dozen boxes of glitterstim spice from Kessel. And slaves. I wanted to vomit at that. The slaves looked pathetically willing to please, their slave collars explaining why they were so obedient. Finally we walked through the hanger. I had never seen a J Class up close, and I wasn't impressed at first glance. I know Carth had enthused about its capabilities, and was impressed by the guns in the turrets, one above and below, and larger bore cannon attached firing forward on her hull port and starboard. "There she is. The newly upgraded _Ebon Hawk_. Remind me to tell you how I got her later. It's quite a story." He led us through a large room that Davik called his 'throne room', then into the guest wing.

"These are your accommodations while you are my guest. The house slaves are quartered right down there. If there's anything you desire, food, drink," He leered, 'A massage, your wish is their command."

"Am I a prisoner?"

"Perish the thought! Thanks to the law enforcement agencies we have been forced to use deeper background checks than we are used to. That forces us to make the applicants wait. At least I'm not a Hutt! They'd throw you in a dungeon and let you out afterward without even an apology!

"Once the background check is done, we'll talk again. Then I will make you an offer. I would suggest you consider it very carefully when I do." I could see the cold anger in his eyes. He wouldn't like having someone turn down his offer! "Until then, I bid you farewell." He motioned, and left, followed by Calo. The door hissed closed.

Canderous growled, then went to the table. He ripped it free of the floor, and slammed it into the wall.

"I've seen him treat his hounds better." He snarled. "Well we're inside. Ready?"

I nodded. I started to reach for my com, but he stopped me. "Davik has every circuit monitored. Any calls from here gets us killed right now." I nodded again, and opened the door.

The hall was empty. "Which way?"

"Through the throne room, then left, down the hall to the main security computer, then we blow the door to the hanger, grab the ship and get out of here."

"Where's the nearest computer?"

He looked at me. "Turn right at the throne room. There's a common terminal there."

"Then we go there first. Hey, T3!" The little droid whistled. "Ready to do some more slicing?"

I looked at the screen. Always ready

We moved through the throne room. There were three guards in the room, and we took them down fast. T3 raced to the terminal, and a blaster bolt just missed singing him. I ran up, through the door that had opened on the right, and took down the guards there.

"T3, gas or zap any rooms you can! Then get the hanger door open!" I shouted.

The droid worked, then paused, giving a whistle and a few bleeps. Rooms gassed, most of the life forms are dead. However the codes for the hanger door and access codes for the ship are not in this system

"Who has them?"

Davik Kang, Calo Nord, and a man named Hudrow

"All right, we can't get to Davik or Calo without entering the hanger, so there is no way to get to them. Where is Hudrow?"

In the 'guest room'

"Davik's torture chamber." Canderous explained. "What did he do to deserve that?"

"Where?" Canderous led me into the throne room, turning right again. We were headed for the spice refinery. The door opened, and I was charging even before I saw the bounty hunter that was patrolling the hall. I killed him. Canderous watched with respect. "Ever been a war bride?"

"No. You can explain it later. Where." He pointed again to the right, and I ran that way. The door opened, and I stared in horror. A man was in a holding cell, and two torture droids were working on him. I charged, Canderous standing behind me to blast one of the droids as I cut the other into scrap. I disengaged the force field, and the man collapsed, gasping in pain.

"Thank you." He gasped.

"I couldn't let you be tortured." I replied.

"Well I pay my debts. I don't have money, but I do have something of value. I was the pilot of the _Ebon Hawk_. I have the codes for access to the hanger, security, all of it. You can take the ship, sell it, ransom it back to Davik." He laughed. "Or go into business for yourself."

I held up my pad. "What are they?"

He spoke, giving the code numbers. When he nodded that he was done, I hefted him to his feet. "You don't want to be here!"

"I know that! Davik was going to kill me when I finished screaming. I'm out of here."

Canderous was merely watching. "All right, we have what we came for. Let's go!"

We had a number of rooms to go through, and we showed no mercy. The Exchange was brutal enough that these men would die rather than surrender or let us pass. I had to assure we had no one able to fight behind us.

We reached the security computer, and I entered the code. The monitor flashed HANGER BAY DOOR OPEN.

I ran to the door just as the building swayed. "An earthquake?"

Canderous looked at the ceiling, then shook his head. "I think those lunatic Sith are blasting the city apart."

The door opened, but we had just run out of luck. Davik and Nord entered from the other section of the estate. "Damn Sith are going to ruin everything! There's a lot of money to be had here! We'd better get to our ships, Calo-" Davik saw us.

"Well, thieves in my hanger! I thought better of you Canderous."

"If you did it wouldn't have come to this, Davik"

"So you expect to just waltz in, steal my ship, and leave me here to die? Sorry, but that isn't the way it's going to be."

"Leave him to me, Davik. I've been looking forward to it." Calo said.

I threw a frag grenade at Calo, charging him. Better to die fighting him than the bombardment. I expected Canderous to support me, but he yelled, "T3!" And opened fire on Davik instead. The man went down in a welter of blood, and Calo backed away, grabbing something from his vest. I felt horror when I saw the thermal detonator in his fist. "I'm not going to hell alone!" He screamed. I skidded, falling.

The scream brought the house down literally. Actually it was a turbolaser bolt that blew through the supports, dropping a section ten meters on a side right on top of where Calo was standing less than half a meter from my legs.

Canderous ran up, "we gotta get out of here!"

I thumbed my com. "Carth!"

"Inbound! One hell of a storm out here!"

I ran to the side of the _Ebon Hawk _and stared at the distant towers.

The sky was raining fire. The city was being leveled by something they couldn't defend against. I saw a structure hit far below. It shuddered, then like a forest giant it fell, taking smaller buildings with it. "Hurry!"

"Clear the path!" Suddenly I saw a shuttle coming toward us. Carth wasn't slowing down. I yelped, dodging aside, and suddenly it was there, slamming into the pad as Carth hit the retros at the last second, the skids screamed, then ripped loose and the shuttle slammed to the deck on it's belly. It rammed into the wall, and I thought they were all dead. But the ramp opened, and Zaalbar was there. He carried a screaming Mission with him and up the ramp, followed by Bastila and Carth.

"Well, you coming?" Canderous shouted.

I thought of Zelka Forn, who wouldn't leave his patients this side of their deaths. Gadon and his merry band of lunatics far below in their desperate fight. All the people I had talked to who were or might soon be dead. I wished them all well and flung myself up the ramp.

_Ebon Hawk_

Danika

Space was as much a hell of fire as the planet. We could see other ships around us being blasted into shards, see the fire of the ships from orbit tearing into them, or into the planet. A pair of fighters had shot past us to savage what looked like a cargo ship.

Carth was silent, his hands on the controls. We weaved through the mass until we were free. Only the massive ships of the line were in front of us now. He rammed the throttle to the stops, and _Ebon Hawk _lived up to her reputation. She leaped into a flat out run that shocked me.

A destroyer fired at us, but it missed. Her actual target, a ground shuttle someone had somehow gotten into space ripped into pieces.

"I didn't ask before, but where are we headed?" Carth asked. He lowered the nose, and _Ebon Hawk _ran between the destroyer and a frigate. We were clear of the planet and close orbit, but that merely meant that anyone shooting outward instead of inward had only the one target.

"Set course for Dantooine! There's a Jedi enclave there, and we can seek refuge." Bastila ordered.

"Take the controls!" He shouted.

"Got it!"

Carth spun, his hands running over the hyper drive controls. An alarm sounded, and he looked up. "Fighters coming through the grid, on our butts."

Bastila looked back at me. "Take the upper gun turret! Keep them off us until we can leap into hyper drive!" She spun as I ran aft. "Canderous! Take the lower turret!"

I reached the ladder, and climbed. The turret was in zero G, which made climbing into the chair easier. I buckled in, flicking the line of switches that brought the targeting system on line. Everything was automatic, I had done this on ships throughout my career. There was a mass of red dots approaching fast from astern. I unlocked the traverse, and pulled the handles, spinning the turret to aim behind us. "Ready!" I shouted.

"Ready." Canderous drawled. I checked the scan data. They were right there! I saw them even as I began firing. A fighter exploded, and the ship shuddered as they made their pass, bolts rocking us. I spun the turret to follow, a second fighter rolling frantically as a near miss clipped a control surface. It dived to get away from me, and Canderous blasted it to scrap. The forward firing guns joined mine as I continued the spin, and fired at the four remaining fighters as they swooped outward like scraps of metal from an explosion. As a unit in formation they made larger targets. But as individuals, they had more options.

I spotted one swooping toward our stern, and spun the turret. I estimated its speed, deflected my aim, and fired. The fighter exploded. I spun back, lifted the guns and caught another as it began its run. I saw another dot vanish, Canderous was covering his area. The last was wary. We were a little too deadly for him to attack, but he had his orders. He charged in from starboard, staying exactly on our centerline. Both of us fired at him, but he came in until he was too close for the guns to bear. A good pilot could maintain that, only turning to fire and turn back out immediately. It was tricky, but I had heard of some that good. But there was a counter.

"Bastila, hard to starboard 90 degrees, now!"

She did as I instructed. The fighter turned into us, bolts shattering some of the hull metal, and was gone. Unfortunately for him he turned to his starboard side, toward our bow even as Bastila made the turn. The forward firing guns ravened as he flew into their zone, and the fighter blew into scrap.

"Ready for hyper jump!' Carth shouted, and I felt the surge as the hyper drive cut in. The stars became lines etched in the sky for an instant, then there was the swirling glow of hyperspace.


	8. Dantooine: Academy

_Ebon Hawk:_

Enroute to Dantooine

We were all stunned by what we had seen. Even Carth who had seen it before. Planets have been bombed into rubble before, but that had been when active resistance was being suppressed. Taris wasn't resisting the attack. The com waves had been frantic with calls pleading for them to stop but the Sith had kept firing.

All because of us.

Mission was hit hard. In the day and a half it took for us to reach Dantooine, she didn't speak to anyone. Zaalbar had taken her in his bosom, and had sat through that entire time merely holding her, being there in her grief. The picture of that poor child hunched against the furry chest, eyes wide with pain and shock will haunt me for the rest of my life.

There was nothing the rest of us could do. She didn't want to hear how they had gone to the Force. That they would be avenged, or maybe they had lived. She wanted the world back the way it had been the day she had met us. Like any child who has just lost everything she cared about, she wanted it back.

We couldn't give her that.

Carth was flying us, with Bastila assisting. I couldn't pilot so I haunted the ship as we tunneled through space. Canderous had moved into one of the cargo holds, and was tinkering with his weapon. Only one thing was on my mind.

Malak. What kind of madman were we dealing with? The problem was that in war you always demonize the enemy. He's always a brutal monster that kills without compunction while your men were superior because their hearts were pure. As a soldier I knew better. The enemy you faced was you in a different uniform mostly. Sure there were monsters over there, but if you watched those around you there were monsters on your side as well. Those that would take it too far, kill without reason, enjoy the deaths of the enemy.

War is mankind at her best and worst. Best because She finds something beyond herself to care about, defends those that depend on her even unto death. Worst because sometimes the beast in all of us gets free, and won't go back into its cage afterward.

I checked the computer files aboard but there was nothing about the war at all except for planets to be avoided. Davik Kang obviously had been indifferent to the slaughter. After seeing some of the files of 'items' sent to slavers, or opponents within the Exchange removed I understood. If he wasn't dealing the pain or feeling it personally, it didn't exist.

Bastila probably knew, but she was uncommunicative. She would watch me with hooded eyes when she left the flight deck. Almost as if she were afraid of me.

Finally I took a cup of tea to Carth. He nodded his thanks, leaned back, and sipped it. "Take a load off." He waved at the copilot's chair. I sat, made sure the controls were not active, and sipped my own tea.

"What do you know about Malak?"

He looked at me. "Malak and Revan were Jedi, you know that, right?" I nodded. "Well we were deep into the Mandalorian wars. The Jedi had been asked for help but they had refused." He shrugged as if that was no surprise. "But some of them didn't like the Council's ruling. A few led by Revan joined us. Malak was Revan's right hand man. They spread out among the fleet, and almost immediately things changed. Before that it was like the Mandalorians were everywhere, hitting us from all sides. But those few people made us see the pattern.

"They made mistakes at first. Revan took a fleet to catch a Mandalorian one at a place called Hotma. But when she did, the enemy fleet had jumped from Hotma to Kando, where Revan was based. So she arrived, found the base empty, and smashed it, then returned to find her own base destroyed."

I understood the concept. In military parlance it was called being overtaken by events. The enemy was supposed to be here, so you went there. But you didn't know they were moving, so you missed each other.

"She got better fast though." He sighed. "When she hit her stride, the Mandalorians didn't have a chance. She always had Malak close at hand. Maybe she saw Malak for what he was."

"Which was?"

"A hardheaded pragmatist. Watching them work alone was interesting. Revan was like a sniper. Picking her targets and taking them down fast with minimal damage. But when the going got tough, she let Malak have his head. If Revan was a sniper, Malak was more like a Gamorrean, smashing everything in his path to his goal. He lost a lot of his own people, but he decimated the enemy as he did it. He never settled in battle for anything but absolute victory. If a garrison resisted, he bombed them into submission. If he wanted it, nothing could keep him from it." His face hardened as he remembered that Malak was now the enemy. "When Revan was still there, even when she had turned to the Sith, she had remained the same. She didn't smash entire planets unless there was no alternative. She kept Malak on his leash, only letting him out when all else failed. Since Revan's death Malak has changed. He's become even more brutal. It was like someone had stripped the governor on an engine. The Sith have been following his lead, and picked up the pace ever since."

The Sith had been a problem for several millennia. Originally I knew, they had been a race, a violently xenophobic race. They had hit us hard back then, killing anyone that stood in their paths. It was one series of wars the Jedi had gotten into willingly, because the Sith had been strong in the Force. Finally they had been beaten back, the race almost destroyed. But the problems had not stopped there.

The nihilistic worldview the Sith had enjoyed must have been catching. A number of Jedi had split off from the others, and left abruptly, seeking the remains of the Sith. They had settled on a planet named Korriban, which had been smashed, occupied by the Sith, smashed again, then left fallow for almost two centuries. The Jedi had proclaimed themselves the New Sith. The actual Sith that had still lived there hadn't been amused and considering the carnage these Dark Jedi and the Sith were inflicting on themselves, the planet had been pretty much been left alone by everyone else.

But that had not ended the problem either. The Sith race was long gone, but others had gone there, and now the Sith, albeit only those that believed the old ideals had struck again a millennia ago. They were beaten, regrouped, and struck again in a pattern that has lasted now for over a thousand years. Yet another Jedi expatriate had led the last Sith war before this one. Exar Kun had left, become the dark Jedi master, and become Darth Kun, the first time the title had ever been used. He had ravaged the galaxy, and been put down as those before him had. His base had been smashed into ruins, and the Republic had again turned its eyes back to the business of living.

This was the result.

"I saw Revan in my vision. She was wearing some kind of mask. Why?"

"Rumors abound." Carth commented. "Some said that she had been disfigured when she was young. Others that she was an attractive woman and had problems dealing with people as a Jedi because of that." He grinned. "Sort of like you and me when we first got together."

"Maybe I'll get a mask then."

"Oh, don't do that." He teased. "Then I'll have to ask what make up you put on that day."

I shook my head. "I am going aft before your fantasies get the better of you."

Dantooine

We came out near Dantooine, about two planetary diameters away, as close as you can get safely. No one really knows where or when the hyperspace drive was developed. About 22,000 years ago, it just appeared, discovered in ancient ruins on dozens of worlds. Everyone would like to claim the credit, but even a hyperspace physicist can't explain exactly how it works. It's like electricity. For the layman, you flip a switch and it's there. But it worked, and with the proper astronavigation calculations, you can go anywhere.

But here you immediately ran into problems. You had to first find out where to go before you could go anywhere. Each planet that had discovered the drives in ruins tried. A lot of them gave up after a time. Others kept at it with bloody-minded persistence until they discovered the corridors that exist today. It's like the old man everyone had heard of that when asked for directions, replies, 'You can't get there from here'.

Hyperspace travel is like nothing else. There are 100 billion stars in the galaxy, but only a few hundred thousand are accessible to date. Unless you want to slow-boat it at less than light speed, you don't go anywhere unless there's a hyperspace corridor.

Scouting new ones is the most dangerous job in the galaxy. A mathematician would do the math, sometimes taking decades, then submit it to the local planetary government, or back when the Government was in charge, the Republic Survey Department, and eventually a ship would be sent to try the new equations. Out of every ten ships that try, only one succeeds. Of the others most make it back, but others disappear. Corridors don't care about something as thin as a star's core, but the people in the ship get fried anyway. Getting too close to a planet on arrival is only one of the problems you face. Most of those deaths come when the gravitation of the planet, star etc, drags you out of hyperspace, usually too close to get away.

Around two centuries ago, the Republic had quietly gotten out of the Survey business. It just wasn't cost effective. There were already a few hundred thousand planets, some of them virgin terrain, and the population hadn't grown enough yet to make it vital, so the Republic instead handed it over to Corporations. They could deduct the expenses from their taxes, and didn't care about the piddling losses of a hundred men or so a decade.

But when they found a new world, the return could be fantastic. In the last century a planet named Kessel had been discovered. The company that had done so almost sold it to the Republic for a weapons test facility, but some enterprising young vice president sent a survey team down onto the planet itself. He found the energy spiders, and took samples of their web for analysis. Those webs, made of Glitterstim, had catapulted him to a presidency and the company into a major contender.

"Dantooine." Bastila sighed. "It seems like a lifetime since I last set foot on her surface though in truth it has only been a few months. We should be safe here from Malak. For now at least."

"Safe! You saw what his fleet did to Taris! There wasn't a building over ten meters tall when they finished! They turned the planet into one massive pile of rubble, and Dantooine, with no defense at all, will be safe?"

"Even the Sith would think twice about attacking Dantooine, Carth. There are many Jedi here, including several of the most powerful Jedi masters of the Order. There is great strength in this place."

For some reason, the view of the planet was like a cooling shower to me. "Bastila is right that we need to stop somewhere. This feels, peaceful somehow."

Carth snorted. Any amity he had felt for me had evaporated again.

"If nothing else we can resupply and recuperate here. The Academy is a place of mental and spiritual peace. Something we can all use after what we have been through." Bastila pressed.

Carth shook his head, closing his eyes tightly. "Maybe you're right. It isn't easy to watch the annihilation of an entire population. Mission is still taking it pretty hard."

"She will find a way to work through her grief." Bastila replied tartly. "She is stronger than she appears. We just need to give her time."

We called approach control, and were directed to a landing pad inside the Jedi Academy itself. I was astonished how mundane the evolution was. A brisk young man on the ground had directed us, no fighters came to check us out, no guns I could see tracked us. It was like there wasn't a war going on.

The Jedi Academy had been built by the standards of the planet, meaning it was burrowed into an existing hillside and set up within it. In this case the center had been hollowed out, and a glorious tree grew in the courtyard that had been created. The landing pad had also been dug out, the berm stabilized so that if something happened and the ship blew up, the energy would be directed mostly upwards. Other trees had been grown here, making it look as if we had landed in a small park.

Bastila had spent the descent in the communications room with the circuits locked so we couldn't listen in. I didn't care. The mission was over. I was ready for some R&R and then back to the front.

The ship settled down, and I could hear metal ticking as it cooled. Bastila came forward. "I must go and speak with the Jedi Council. I need their advice on... recent developments." I could tell she wanted to look at me, but she stared at Carth. "After I have met with them, I will contact you. The local authorities have instructed that no one is to leave the docking bay until I return. However the quartermaster of the Republic supply center is awaiting your list of our needs."

"Friendly place." Carth snorted. He got on the com, and began listing what we needed. I went aft. Mission was sitting alone for once. I could hear noises from the engine room. Knowing the Wookiee, he was happily at work tuning the engines. He had been complaining about tuner flutter for the last day.

I walked over, got a cup of tea, and brought one to her. She stared at it, then up at me. "Sorry I've been out of it the last couple of days." She stared at the cup. "I was just thinking about Taris. I can't believe it's gone!" She looked at me, begging for understanding. "I mean, I grew up there! I remember the old man who ran the sausage booth, the woman that sold clothes that were only ten years out of date. Now, it's-it's just gone!" The last was said as if she had seen someone disappear from a street, and never returned.

I motioned toward a chair, and she nodded. I sat, sipping my own tea. "I'm sorry, Mission. I don't know what to say."

She shrugged. "I don't think there really is anything you can say. I just have to find some way to deal with it, I guess. It'll take some time."

I watched her, and she looked at me, and got defensive. "Look, it's not like I'm saying I can't go on or anything like that. It's just, a shock, you know? I mean I'd heard horror stories about how evil the Sith are but the reality of it kind of slaps you in the face.

"But that's why we need to stop Malak, right? The more time I spend dwelling on Taris, the closer it comes for someone else. If I can stop just one person from feeling what I am feeling, I'll die happy. So stop worrying about me. I'll be okay. And I don't care what I have to do, if I can help bring down Malak, just let me know."

I knew she wanted to end it there, but we hadn't had time to really talk, and the girl made me feel better. Talking so blithely about death had bothered me. "We haven't really talked before, Mission. Tell me about yourself."

"Me?" She chuckled, and I smiled. She was healing after all. "You want to know about me? Nobody's ever really been interested in me!" She seemed delighted.

"Carth talked to you-"

No. The geezer talked at me, not to me. Even when all I was to you was some kid, you talked to me. What do you want to know?"

"How did you and Zaalbar get together?"

"Big Z is my family, you know? My parents, well I think they're dead. I haven't seen them since I was really little. It was just me on my own until the day I saw Big Z in the Lowercity. I could tell right away he was in trouble.

"This was before the gang wars got out of hand but even then the Vulkars were slime. A few of them were hassling Big Z, trying to goad him into a fight. But he's really a big plushy toy, he didn't want to fight."

"What kind of fool tries to provoke a Wookiee?"

"Hey, no one ever said the Vulkars were smart. But there were three of them. I think they might have figured they could take him if they had to. Anyway, I don't like the Vulkars even on their best day. I'd sounded them out about joining the gang, this was before Brejik was in charge, you see, and they told me that when I filled out," She motioned to her chest. "They'd think about it. That really ticked me off.

"When I saw them picking on this poor defenseless Wookiee, new and all alone on a strange planet, I just lost it! I screamed, 'Hey! Leave him alone you core slimes!' and charged them. One of them saw me coming, and he belted me one good. He hit me so hard I just about lost consciousness."

"Striking a child?"

"Who you calling a child? I'm fourteen!"

I lifted my mug pretending to sip to hide my smile. This meant she had charged three adults when she was only eleven or so. She had courage at least.

"Those Vulkar didn't scare me. They're cowards, always have been. They see their own blood, and they run bleating home to mama. I was going to deal with them, but I never got the chance. I guess Big Z didn't like seeing me smacked because he grabbed the guy who hit me, and held him a meter off the floor by the neck."

What did the others do?"

"Like I said, cowards. They ran screaming. Can't blame them, really. The first time you see an irate Wookiee up close, it makes an impression you don't forget. I saw it and it isn't a pretty sight. I'm just glad he wasn't mad at me right then. I thought Zaalbar was going to rip that punk's arms off, and beat him to death with the wet ends. The Vulkar was so scared he wet himself and fainted. Or maybe Big Z's breath knocked him out.

"I keep telling him to brush those choppers of his, but do you think he listens? Just stand downwind when he talks, and you miss most of it.

"Anyway, I knew those Vulkars would gather up a really serious group to take him down, so I dragged him away.

"We've been together ever since. We're one hell of a team. We look out for each other, you know?"

I pictured an eleven-year-old Twi-lek a little over a meter tall towing a two and a half meter Wookiee as if she were a tugboat. I nodded. "How did Zaalbar end up on Taris?"

"All he ever said was there was trouble on his home world of Kashyyyk, and he had to leave. If you haven't noticed, he's not a motor mouth. He's the strong and silent type. Don't matter though. We don't pay attention to the past, it detracts from the now."

"How did you survive before you met Zaalbar?"

"What's that supposed to mean? You think I'm the damsel in distress like a historical drama? I got street smarts, I learned to take care of myself. In fact more times than not it's me getting him out of trouble. You know, Big Z is really gullible. If I wasn't there, he'd have bought the Senate tower or something."

I laughed. "Now he has a purpose, as do you. To beat this."

"Yep. It's like I used to tell my brother 'fast talk and slick banter don't get the job done'."

"Brother?" I looked at her. Suddenly she was wishing she was the silent type. "Mission, you have a brother?"

"Hey! My brother is something I don't talk about okay? He's a touchy subject. If it's all the same to you, let's just leave him out of every thing we ever talk about!" She stood, taking the empty cup with her. A moment later she came back in, and slid it in the sanitizer. Then she walked back out.

Jedi Council

Carth

We expected a couple of hours, but it wasn't until noon the next day that Bastila finally signaled for us to let her back aboard.

"I have spoken briefly with the Council. Danika, they have requested an audience with you. We should go at once."

"An audience, and not even a command performance? And making it to someone that isn't even a Jedi? That's pretty unusual for Jedi under even the best of circumstances." I was gathering up my weapons. "Any idea what this is about Bastila?"

"I am sorry, Carth, but I can't tell you, and you are not invited. I ask you to please just trust in the Force and the Council."

I glared at her, then threw the holstered weapons back down. "The same Force and Jedi council that gave us Revan and Malak? What type of spice have you been sniffing?"

She looked at me until I looked away. "I don't like being left out of the loop, but I'm not looking to get you in trouble with the council, Bastila. We'll do things your way this time."

"Come, I will escort you to the council chamber."

Danika shrugged helplessly. She had changed into some clothes we had brought aboard, but she still carried the Echani Brand and a holstered blaster. I watched them off the ship, then went to find something to beat on, or fix.

Danika

Stepping off onto the surface of Dantooine for the first time was like slipping into bed as a child. Everything felt comfortable and soft. I almost hugged myself. The docking area was cleared except for two Blba trees. These had been dethorned by the council, because the natural life cycle of the tree included the local carnivorous snails, and they were a pest in dwellings.

Bastila and I walked together, pacing in rhythm. The dreams about her had stopped, but I still felt uncomfortable. It was like someone had taken my life and turned it into an entertainment drama without my consent. She was more silent than usual. I wanted to ask her why, but I felt she would refuse to answer.

The entryway had a massive blast door and the hall beyond jogged sharply right then left at the other end. Simple safety precautions. If a ship exploded, it might blow the door to hell, but even if the door stood open as it did now the hall would act as a blast channel to slow it before it reached the living areas.

Everywhere there was a bustle of movement. Children streamed in laughing crowds from room to room, shepherded by older men and women in Jedi garb, the ubiquitous robes they always wore. I later discovered that while it looked crowded, it wasn't. There were fifty of the order here, About fifteen Masters, the same number of young students, and the remainder were Padawans.

There was room for three times that number.

Padawan is an indistinct title. A trained Jedi, but one who wasn't yet considered a master. Most of them were still in training, just learning the basics of their craft. I would only learn the nuances of the title much later.

We came into the courtyard, and the massive Blba tree there rose ten meters over our heads.

"You there, Padawan!" A sharp voice called. I looked to the speaker She was a young woman younger than Bastila. She stormed over to me glaring. "Why are you not robed? Do you mock the honored traditions of our order?" Bastila shook her head wryly and walked on, leaving me to the girl.

"I don't know what you mean." I replied. "I am not a Padawan. I am a guest, Danika Wordweaver. I am here with Bastila."

"Bastila! I have heard of her. They say she has already mastered the art of battle meditation. Remarkable in one so young. Though I have also heard that she has a foolish pride in that accomplishment." Since she was about three years younger than Bastila, I took that more as envy than anything else.

"But as for you. You claim you are not a Jedi? I find this hard to believe. The Force is strong within you, I can feel its presence. If this is some kind of jest take heed! The masters will not allow the order to be ridiculed."

"I didn't even know what the word Padawan meant before I came here." I replied. "I have no reason to jest with you, or lie to you." I let a touch of irritation creep into my voice.

She sensed it, and regarded me with hooded eyes. "Please forgive the abruptness of my greeting." I could tell from her tone that the apology was pro forma. "It was harsh and perhaps unfair. My master often warns me I must learn to control my emotions. I see I have much left to learn. I wish you a pleasant stay among us, Guest Danika. May the Force be with you."

I nodded, and walked on. I wouldn't let some child irritate me. Bastila rejoined me. "I could have used a little help there."

"Why? You handled it well. And Belaya does need to learn to control her temper."

"You know her?"

"Know of her. She just became a Padawan last year. They want to have her more seasoned before releasing her on the galaxy."

"Maybe they should marinate her instead." Bastila choked back a giggle. Suddenly in my mind the dreams came back in full force. What was happening?

There were four Masters awaiting us. Two were human, one Twi-lek, the last a race I had never seen before. He was short, not even a meter tall, green skinned, with wide mouth, expressive eyes, and ears that flicked about as he talked. Vandar Tokare's race has been among the Republic for as long as the Jedi order has existed, but no one knows what their race is called, or where they are from. All of his answers were the same as every one of the race since they had joined us. He said they called themselves the people, which means exactly nothing. If you look up the root languages of the Republic, you will see 'the people' is what all of them call themselves, with minor variations. He said they came from the planet Dirt, which also means little. Every version of language and race throughout the Galaxy calls their home planet 'the dirt from which we came'. But he spoke Basic, slightly changed by the way his mind worked, and never spoke his native tongue.

The Twi-lek motioned for us to join them. The council room was large enough to hold everyone of the order on Dantooine at present. They were standing, not seated as if in judgment. But somehow I knew they were judging me.

"Ah, so you are the one that rescued Bastila. It is appropriate that you are here for this discussion." His voice was deep an mellifluous. His basic clean and precise. "After all, we had been discussing your rather, special case. I am Zhar Lestin of the Jedi Council. With me are Master Vrook Lamar, Master Vandar Tokare, and of course the chronicler of our Academy, Master Dorak. Padawan Bastila I am sure you already know." I nodded to each in turn. Vandar watched me as if I was an amusing pet, but it didn't bother me as much as you might think. Vrook glared at me as if I had come in half dressed. Dorak merely looked at me coolly. I later found that he had a perfect photographic memory, and would record exactly what happened afterward. They all stood there, as if waiting for me to speak.

"What does the Council wish of me?" I asked.

Zhar motioned to Bastila. "Bastila tells us you are strong in the Force. Under the present circumstances, we have been considering you for Jedi training."

My mind reeled. "Strong in the Force?"

"Master Zhar speaks out of turn perhaps. We need indisputable proof of your strong affinity to the force before we would even consider you for training." I looked to Vrook. If anything his animosity was growing. For a moment, I thought maybe he actually hated me but I set that thought aside. I had known Drill Instructors in boot camp that were the same, always angry, never satisfied. When everything went to hell, it was them you thanked because they were the ones that never allowed any slack.

"Proof!" Bastila was outraged. "Surely the entire Council can feel the strength of the Force in this woman! And I have already related the events that took place on Taris."

Vrook shook his head. "Perhaps it was simple luck."

Master Vandar looked up at the man. "Master Vrook, we both know that there is no luck. There is only the Force. We all feel the power that flows from this woman, even though it is wild and untamed. Now that this power has manifested itself, can we safely ignore it?"

Vrook was adamant. "The Jedi training is long and hard, even when working with the open mind of a child. Teaching a child is hard, how much harder will it be with an adult mind already set in its ways?"

"Masters, I consider this a great honor." I said. They all looked at me as if they expected the next word to be 'but'. "I do not know if I am ready for this, but if you believe I can learn, I will try my best."

"There is no try. You do or do not." Vandar piped.

"Master Vrook, traditionally the Jedi do not accept adults for training, this much is true." Dorak interjected in his dry pedantic way. "There however have been exceptions in the history of our order. In each it has come down to one such as her." He motioned toward me. "A special case."

"I agree with master Dorak." Vandar said. "The times are hard, and we must be ready to face that. Many of our own students across the galaxy have left to learn the ways of the Sith instead. The order needs numbers, and if the recruits must be older than is customary, we must consider the need. To stand against Malak we must have strength. Since Revan died-"

"Are you certain Revan is truly dead?" Vrook roared. He glared at Bastila, who looked away. "What if we were to undertake training this one, and the Dark Lord should return?"

Vandar looked up at the man calmly. "Such is not for the ears of anyone save the Council, Master Vrook. Bastila, take your companion back to the ship. Tomorrow morning we will speak with her again."

Bastila bowed wordlessly. I echoed the bow and followed.

"I thought Revan was dead."

She merely shook her head.

Acceptance

_ The room was stone, the separate blocks locked together in a manner that suggested not only cutting, but the Force as well somehow. Doors opened, and air screamed into it as the pressure equalized. Two figures entered, and I wafted toward them. One was huge, head shaved, and male. The other was smaller, slimmer, wrapped in a flowing robe, with a mask. I felt a chill. Revan! That meant the other, young, handsome, unblemished, was Malak._

_ "Can you feel it, Revan?" Malak raised his arms as if embracing the entire room. "I can feel the Dark side here, stronger than you have ever imagined!"_

_ "We do not have time for this." Revan replied. Her voice sounded familiar somehow. "If the text we read is correct, there is a key to the survival of the Republic in this place. That is why we are here."_

_ "Yes. Forgive me, my old friend."_

_ Revan waved forward. "Come. It is beyond that door." I turned unbidden, and there was a door that looked like a solid block. "Yes, it is here." She whispered. Her hands came down, and I felt the Force run through them, slamming into the door. It began to open-_

I snapped upright in my bed. I knew the room they had been on was just a few kilometers away from where I was. How I don't know. They had sought something of great strength. To protect the Republic, Revan had said. But Malak had felt only the Dark side there. They had instead found something that had brought about the war we were fighting even now. Something so steeped in the darkness that no sane person would consider using it. But Revan had not cared.

I couldn't get to sleep after that. When I finally arose, Bastila was already gone. Carth and Canderous were off getting the supplies we had requested, Mission and Zaalbar were back in the engine with T3 kibitzing. I drank my morning tea, and tried to wake up. The meeting was- I looked at the chrono. Supposed to be in a few minutes.

I stepped out into the crisp morning air. A lifter had just landed, and droids were moving crates from it. Carth saw me, and shook his head. "This morning is getting stranger by the minute. The quartermaster didn't even quibble about what we needed. That's a switch. Then Bastila left looking like she'd seen a ghost. She did say you should go to the Council chamber without her when you got up. I think it's important." He snorted. "So you shouldn't keep them waiting."

"Did she say anything else?"

"No she didn't. She didn't look well as I recall. For that matter, neither do you. Are you alright?"

"I had a rough night." I told him. I walked away.

The Council was already there, as was Bastila. They stopped talking as I walked in, and Zhar motioned for me to join them.

Vandar looked up at me. "Bastila has told us of a most unusual development. She claims you and she shared a dream. A vision of Malak and Revan in one of the ancient ruins right here on Dantooine." He tapped his cane on the ground for emphasis. I was stunned. I had thought I was alone in that dream!

Dorak coughed delicately. "These ruins have long been known. After all, the Academy has been here since Master Vodo-Siosk Baas established it a century ago. It has been believed all this time that they were merely ancient burial mounds. But it seems that they are more than that if Revan and Malak found something of such power there."

"Yes." Suddenly the dream returned in full force. "They were looking for something. Something they had read about in the ancient records here."

"Bastila has described this shared dream to us in great detail. We feel that this is more than a mere dream. It is a vision. The Force is acting through you, and at the same time, is working through Bastila as well." Vandar continued.

I looked at Bastila. She looked haggard. I must have looked as bad. "I see no answer than to trust in your wisdom, Master."

"You and Bastila share a powerful connection to the Force. Through the Force, you also share a powerful connection to each other." Zhar took up the narrative. "This is not unheard of. Connections such as this can form between master and apprentice. Between friends who learn together, between lovers even." I blushed at that. I hadn't told them about the earliest dreams. "But it is rare for them to form so quickly."

"From what we see whatever dangers lie ahead, we can no longer ignore the destiny that brought you and Bastila, to us at this time together." Vandar said softly. He looked up at Vrook who was ignoring him. That man's eyes were locked on me.

"Then you are saying that we are joined together somehow. That a bond I do not understand has been formed." I said, still reeling. Suddenly I heard the words again, but now it was Bastila's voice. _Bond with me._

"You and she are linked as is your fates by this bond as you call it. But this is something we can use. This link may be what is needed to defeat Malak and the Sith." Vandar explained.

"But don't let thoughts of power and glory fill your head." Vrook snapped. "Such thoughts are sure paths to the Dark side. The way of the light is long and hard. It is like climbing a mountain. Sure you can stay at the bottom, but that is the Dark side in all its strength. Sure you can climb up a ways, then give up, but that can lead to the Dark as well, for the Dark never gives up on dragging you down. Or you can fall as many have. To reach the light you must climb and never allow yourself to make a mistake that send you crashing down again. Are you ready for such an undertaking?"

"I can only do my best not to fail." I looked at Master Vandar. After his first comment, I had found another way to say it.

He looked up at me with a twinkle in his eye. "You must understand that there is little choice in this decision. For you, or for us. Across the Galaxy our numbers dwindle at an alarming rate. We have had to send many Jedi on quests to find that which we can use to stop Malak and the Sith. Most have not returned.

"The Sith as well know what we must do. They hunt our brothers like animals, striking from ambush, or by assassination wherever they are found. We feel that it is only a matter of time until they discover this hidden refuge, and destroy it as well." I suddenly pictured the hell rain I had witnessed, seeing the Academy falling in ruins, the Jedi dead in windrows, unable to strike back from the ground. I was terrified by it.

"Others of our order have fallen from the light, or turned from it willingly." Vrook's face was a mask, and again I felt his hate directed at me. "They have given their allegiance to Malak and the Sith."

"Jedi leave the order to join them?"

Vrook snorted. "Where do you think the Dark Jedi within their ranks come from? The lure of the dark side, of learning rapidly what we know must be taught more slowly calls to these weak ones. Malak's power grows as more planets fall to his armies, make agreements to surrender, or swear themselves ally. And those of our order who cannot stand the chance of losing run to him instead of fighting."

"Yes." Zhar cast a warning glance at Vrook. "If Malak is not stopped, the Republic will fall. The Sith will never stop trying to hunt us down, for in all the Galaxy, only the light can confront the darkness. If the Jedi are no more, the Galaxy will fall into the dark times before the Republic existed again. A time of Darkness and tyranny that has not been seen for a thousand generations."

They all looked thoughtful at that. Vandar broke the silence. "The Council has decreed that if you are willing to undertake it, you have a mission that can be handled only by you and Bastila. You must investigate the ruins you dreamt of once the Council deems you ready."

"Yes." Dorak said. "Perhaps you will find something there, some clue, that can explain how Revan and Malak were corrupted. Perhaps a way to stop Malak at last. As you go, I shall be going through the ancient archives of the order. You say they found the clues that led them there in our own records. If it is there, I shall find it!"

"I'm ready to go now." I considered what weapons I would need. Bastila could cover my back with her lightsaber and Force abilities. I was considering taking T3 with us when Vandar interrupted my thoughts. "Your bravery does you credit, but an untrained person in the force, entering such a place would be a danger we will not countenance. First you must be trained in the ways of the Jedi. You must learn to resist the darkness within you, which resides within all of us. Otherwise you are doomed to fail before you have even begun."

I wanted to scream that there wasn't time. That Malak would be knocking on the door with a 10-megawatt turbo laser before I learned enough to help! But part of me knew that like any weapon, I had to take this Force in me and learn to control it before I destroyed myself with it. "While I worry about how long this will take, I accept your judgment, Master Vandar."

He looked at me with that knowing look. I knew that somehow he had been watching my mind wrestling with the two constraints of time and necessary training. He seemed pleased with my decision. He motioned toward Zhar.

"We must begin your training at once. You have a destiny that awaits you that we must prepare you to face. The fate of the entire galaxy may rest on your shoulders."

"I just hope she is ready for it." Vrook growled.


	9. Dantooine: Training

Dantooine:

Training

I can't really explain the Force, or how the training allows you to tap into it to someone that doesn't have at least some ability. I have had so many roll their eyes at this, and while I have always tried to explain, most don't want to hear anything that isn't a how-to manual.

I found the easiest way to explain it, is like this;

Go out and look at a rainbow, or a sunrise or a sunset. Record every feeling. The wind on your face, the smell of flowers in the distance, the rustle of leaves, the aftertaste of a good brandy you had before you stepped outside.

Now, picture a baby still in the womb that has so many birth defects that it will never see, smell, hear, taste or feel anything. It floats in the amniotic fluid, totally cut off from the outside world. Now assume for an instant that you and this baby share a telepathic bond, but it is only on the verbal level. You cannot thrust pictures into that mind.

Now explain everything your senses recorded when you were outside looking at that vision. You can, but most languages use words that link to the physical feelings you have. You can describe the sun as molten, but if they don't understand what heat is, what good will the word do?

Within two weeks of beginning, I could hear the delicate scent of the flowers. I could smell the color purple. I could touch the rustling of the solar wind as it caressed Dantooine. I could see the taste of that brandy. I could taste the pulse in Bastila's throat.

There is honestly no other way to describe it.

Those of us that can use the Force have a tiny bacteria name Midichlorians to thank for it. Midichlorians are a benign viral symbiont, one that inhabits every creature in the galaxy but harms none of them. They live within us and are a focus for the Force. If you have the training you can feel them drawing it from around you, and you can in turn direct it.

I found that if I approached learning about the Force as I had long ago with the blade, it became easier somehow. Try to do what Master Zhar or Master Vandar suggested. Try until I could do it. Then in my own time, try harder, move harder things, concentrate more deeply. Soon I could take a ball bearing in a bowl, and cause it to roll around the bowl until it flew over the lip into my hand. I started lifting small things, the same ball bearing, then a book, then a chair, finally as I floated with chairs rotating in a circle as I were the sun with it's planets. I commented to Bastila one morning that I felt I could lift the Ebon Hawk, then hastened to tell her it was only a joke because of her disapproval.

I dived into the archives as if I were swimming in that knowledge, and felt it pour into my mind and settle there, causing thoughts I had never imagined to grow. It made me hunger for more. I read the treatises of Master Vodo-Siosk and every master that followed him.

I found that my companions had their own colors and perception of those colors about them. Canderous was a flaming red of suppressed emotion. Carth was a roil of anger and mistrust, with glimmers of humor and happiness. Except for the loss of her world, Mission was a furnace of repressed excitement, and Zaalbar balanced her with a patience at odds with his appearance.

Bastila worried me, because she had shoots of darkness I could almost touch. They linked as Belaya said to her quick temper and pride. I didn't say anything because I felt that everyone here who was a Jedi would see them as well as I.

Master Vrook was always there in the background, watching my meditation, seeing me lifting objects, now some as heavy as a ton or more, standing and watching me read in the Archives. His aura was almost a blinding blue, but there were shoots of darkness there as well. They linked to anger and for some reason, regret.

After a few weeks, Master Zhar handed me over to Master Vandar. Vandar was the master of the lightsaber. He was working on what appeared to be such a device as I walked in. "Sit; I will be ready in a moment." He said.

I watched him work. His tridactyl hand worked smoothly with the hilt, adjusting some mechanism within it, then he gave a chuff of satisfaction.

"We were concerned about teaching you the lightsaber, young apprentice."

"I don't understand, Master. I have used a sword before."

"Yes you have, and that is why we are concerned. You know what a light saber is, yes?"

"It is a collimated beam of energy focused through a crystal that heightens the strength, and limits its focus." I replied.

He snorted. "Read Master Koori's treatise have you?" He asked.

I shrugged. About sixteen centuries earlier, crystals had been found that directed energy into a forced beam, but at the same time did not let it extend too far from that focus. No one knew why the crystals worked in such a manner, and those who worked in fields affected by this discovery were still arguing to this day. Master Koori's book was the definitive work, and only 400 years old. Practically last month for the Jedi.

"The Jedi made the lightsaber because they needed a weapon of last resort." Vandar said. I understood. As much as they tried to maintain the balance, Jedi did gather enemies. Those that wished more than an agreement had given them, governments that felt their rights were more important, and of course the Sith. We could have walked around in four meter tall powered armor with all of the weapons it could bear, but it's kind of hard to convince people you're only there to help with all of that firepower on your back.

But the Jedi of that time had to protect themselves. They had begun with the sword back when the Republic was formed, and when vibroblades were invented used them instead. Then the lightsaber was designed first around normal crystals such as quartz or even diamond, but now primarily around these rare and valuable crystals.

"What does pure energy weigh?" Vandar asked.

"Nothing, Master." I replied. The question made no sense.

"Exactly. But a true blade, even a vibroblade with just that strip of metal in the center does. That is one reason why a child is easiest to teach. You can hand a child a lightsaber, and he has nothing to compare it to. You however are used to that weight, to having to resist swinging too hard, or too lightly. To stopping the blade in an instant because your muscles are used to it. If I handed you a lightsaber, you would hurt yourself long before you dealt with an enemy." He flicked a switch, and a lightsaber blade shot out.

"This is the best I could do on short notice, young one. The 'blade' is made by a crystal with a low powered power cell. Enough to form the blade and little else. It can singe flesh, but will not cut it. I have designed it with only this setting to protect you. Catch." He flicked it off, then tossed it in my direction. Using the Force I caught it, and brought it into my open hand. He picked up a solid mask of metal, and tossed it to me and I caught it bringing it to my other hand.

"Stand there in the en garde position. Put on the helmet and await further instruction." I did as I was told. The instant the helmet was on, I could see nothing. Pads covered my eyes so that I could not even try to squint around them. But I could hear, and still feel the Force. There was the greenish white of Master Vandar before me. He stood with both hands on his cane. "Switch on your weapon." The blade surprised me, I didn't know until then that energy itself was something the Force could sense. Then I chided myself. I had seen students here walk through a hall with blaster turrets blazing, deflecting the bolts with the very weapons they carried. Of course you could feel energy!

"Now you know from your past how to use a sword. Use this as one." I slowly began the first Kata I had learned so many years ago from Kalendra. The blade felt odd, and I couldn't explain why.

"There are more complex forms. Use them."

I began into the saber dance, as a single bladed version among the Echani is called. Part of that requires you to shift your grip, holding the pommel as if it were a knife with the blade down along your arm instead of being thrust forward. Then you would progress into what is called the wheel, a defensive spiral of the blade spinning before you to block any attack. Your wrist holds the blade firm.

At least in theory. I started to shift my grip and go into the wheel, when I felt a sharp burning sensation in my forearm, then in my knee. I lost control of the weapon, and felt it also score across my chest. I dropped it, gasping.

For a long moment, there was silence. "I had hoped from what you did at the start that it would all flow so simply. I am sorry for that. But now you see why we worried. You must practice this every chance you get. Alone, with others watching to tell you how you have done, with that blade only. Do not go back to your other weapons, in this they will only hurt your progress You must do it with your eyes closed, and if you cannot keep them closed, with the helmet you now wear. Until you have learned this, there can be no going forward."

"But Malak-"

"As needy as we are, Malak must wait on this." He replied. "Go back to your ship."

As much as they bothered me when I had learned the Force, I found that being around the crew of my ship was more restful than not. I wanted to read but I was worried that I could not handle a simple single blade. What good would I be if I could not bear the weapon of my order?

I went to the Port cargo hold. Canderous had taken over the other, incessantly tinkering with the swoop bike he had somehow gotten aboard. Most everyone else stayed away from him. I looked around the area, and judged I had enough room to dance if the sword would let me.

I burned myself almost constantly for the next three days. I used up all of the burn salve we had aboard, and Carth ordered more, which was delivered as everything else we had ordered, without complaint. I went to bed hurt, angry and frustrated rather than continue because I knew that while those emotions might speed my actions, they would also draw me away from the light. If I had to be mad to use the blade correctly, what good would I be?

After a while I was burning myself less. Then one day I was thinking about something I had read in the Archive. A book that had not been written on Dantooine, but on Korriban; captured during the Sith war of so long ago. It was a copy of an even older book according to the forward, a book almost as ancient as the Republic itself, which had also been a mere copy of one even older. The wording had been archaic, and hard to read, but something about the wording of the most recent translation only a century old made a deep impression.

_ Then they came, the invaders, ripping out places of worship on Korriban among others, placing within them great symbols of their power. Long was the tyranny as they used the Force and matter as one to strike terror into the hearts of all that faced them _

I walked into the cargo bay, and ran over what the words had said translated from so long ago. I picked up that damn sword, and began to move in the first Kata.

_ The seat of their power was the Star Forge, an engine of great might and darkness. That gave them their every want and need, and protected them from attack. Strong were they in the Force but then they met an enemy who was as great. Planets were devastated, and billions were fed into those flames. Then it was that a great plague struck them Many died, and others lived yet found they could no longer touch the Force. The Star Forge fell silent, for without the Force, a being could not make the controls work, for the Force imbued the very walls. And without it all was solid immovable matter. _

_ Then did the oppressed come, taking the ships that their masters could no longer work, raining fire on them wherever they dwelt, even to the foot of the Star Forge itself, for the weapons that could turn a planet to dust were silent, they would not obey the pleas of those they had once protected._

_ Yet one who still used the Force threw up a wall of such power that no weapon could penetrate it. The ships that had come fell into the star or crashed on the planet and those far enough away fled-_

"Danika."

"Hm?" I opened my eyes, looking at Bastila. As I did, I saw a flash of light pass less than three centimeters from my face. I did not stop, but instead looked forward. The blade was moving, and I was dancing with it as I had learned. But this blade was that weakened lightsaber beam. I watched my hands going through the intricate movements, and could see I was into Kata 11, about half way through the twenty Kata set used for practice. I stopped. "How did I do that?"

"How did you do it without a qualm, without a cut for almost an hour?" Bastila asked.

"I don't know. I had read something that I think might be the clue to what Revan was looking for, and was concentrating on what the words might mean when I started."

"Think of something else." She commanded. "Start again."

I did as she had bid, my eyes firmly closed. I started to run through our equipment inventory. Surprisingly large for a ship of our mass. After two hours without a burn she stopped me again. She held her lightsaber. "Try this, but be careful."

I took it, and the twin blades sprang from it. Again I closed my eyes. This was easier. I had been training with twin blades since I was a young woman, and I knew the nuances of them as well as I knew anything in my life. I began to dance in earnest; the slow glide forward, the whip of the blades past my face as I went into the Water wheel, the variant of the wheel practiced with paired blades-

"Danika."

-I suddenly knew I had done this before. Not with a paired blade such as this, but with a single blade, the joy of that impression leaped in my heart, and I began to whirl the weapon faster-

"Danika..."

-I had done this somewhere, perhaps in a past life some people speak of. I had been the best and even masters had watched in amazement as I had cut flies from the air, and strips of paper from a sheet held by a volunteer-

"Danika!" I stopped the blades beside my hip, one forward one back in the low guard position. I opened my eyes. There had been a metal crate before me, one of the empties we hadn't returned to the quartermaster yet. I had cut it in half, not in one blow but in neat strips that lay on the deck, glowing from the heat of the weapon, starting with a wedge of metal, then progressively larger shapes. I stepped back from it, my thumb found the stud, and the blades fell silent and vanished. I handed it back to Bastila, and she looked at my handiwork.

"I think you are ready."

Tests:

Danika

I couldn't wait for some of it. I went to Master Dorak, and showed him the book I had been reading. He pounced on it, and was lost in it before I could do more than explain what I had read. I left him happily engrossed in a time beyond that of the Republic. Both Master Vandar and Master Zhar were away, and I wanted to tell them both what had happened, but of course could not. I was walking back through the corridor when Master Vrook came around the corner. It wasn't until then that I realized that except for watching me from a distance, he had not gotten close to me since the Council meeting of almost two months ago. In fact, while there were fifteen Masters present, only the Council members would even speak to me. I didn't know why, but it was a fact I had to accept.

"How is your training going?" He growled.

"I believe I am finally ready to work with an actual lightsaber." I admitted.

"Finally." He motioned, and walked into the training room. He keyed a sensor, and a remote ball glided from its niche. "Helmet." He snapped. I picked it up, and slid it on. "Saber." He flipped the handle to me and I caught it without using the Force. "En garde."

I flicked it on, and waited in middle guard position. The remote was invisible, only the humming of it's anti-grav unit giving me an approximate position. I moved the blade, and felt a bolt deflect into the wall.

Then they became faster and faster, a rain that would hurt if one of them struck me. The sound of the unit became diffuse, and the rain fell harder and faster. I was untouched, but I didn't know how long that would be true.

Then they came in a flurry, I could have sworn the remote was flying around me but I could no longer hear it.

"Enough!" Master Zhar shouted. The rain stopped. "Take off your helmet, Apprentice. " I slid it off, and looked at the five remotes that still circled me. I looked to Master Vrook. He stood beside Zhar, glaring at me with such hate that I was stunned.

"Better than I had ever imagined." Vrook said softly, then he handed the remote controller to Zhar and padded out. Zhar looked after him for a long moment, then back at me.

"Your final tests begin tomorrow. I would suggest you get a good night's sleep." Zhar sent the remotes back to their niches, and left. I looked at the lightsaber in my hand, then set it on the desk at the end of the room.

The next morning, I arose early. Bastila who had been working with me when I practiced my training was absent, and part of me missed her. She had become almost like my shadow for the last two months or so. I picked up a mug, accidentally dropped it, and caught it with the Force a few centimeters from the floor.

"Beats having to clean it up doesn't it?" I looked at Mission where she stood. She had begun to smile again but it was a sad smile. The kind a child gets after they find that the monster they thought was under the bed was real, regardless of what their parents said.

"Yes it does. Tea?"

"Sure." I handed her the filled mug, got another and poured mine. "So what is it like to use the Force?"

"Like finding out you have only taken shallow breaths all your life." I grinned. "Or finding out that boys are really attracted to those new growths that bothered you a year before." She laughed out loud, once again the child without a care. I could see her growing up, having children being happy-

_Her face contorted screaming. I could see her hands raised in supplication rather than defense. As if that would stop me. I blocked a blaster bolt and knew it was Carth, could hear him pleading with me to stop or he would kill me. Canderous would do nothing, I knew. He was mine, had been mine since the day he had joined us. Bastila would bend to my will, fall __on her knees and proclaim me master. Malak would die, not quickly, but by cut after narrow cut as I sliced away every bit of the betrayer's flesh. I could feel the blade slicing through Mission, watched her fall. Heard Zaalbar's scream of rage and pain and betrayal. "Wait your turn." I snarled, turning to face him. The bowcaster was up, but his heart warred with his oath and I reached out, feeling his skull collapse in my Force imbued hand-_

-"Danika!" I started back, looking at the mug at my feet, shattered. I set down the pot, and sat, shivering with a cold that had nothing to do with temperature. She fussed about me, and I finally had to beg her to sit. "Please Mission, I'm all right."

"Well you looked like someone had hit you with a stun baton."

"It wasn't a stun baton, it was the Force." I replied. Feet ran up the gangway, and stopped at the passageway to the central room. Bastila came in, eyes wary. Her lightsaber was in her hand, and I knew she was ready to trigger it in an instant.

"Well at least I finally know you how to roust you out of bed in the morning." I joked. It had been a running gag among us. Bastila was usually the last awake, and was not by any stretch a morning person. I was almost as bad, but at least they didn't have to threaten me with ice water.

She calmed, but was not amused. Neither was I. "I felt-"

"I know. I saw a vision. A horrible vision." I pointedly did not look at Mission. "I think I have to speak with Master Vandar and Master Zhar right now."

"They are expecting you." Bastila hung her lightsaber from her belt.

We walked to the Council room in silence. I was still horrified by what the vision had shown me. Mission dying not by chance but by my hand just a few weeks away. How I knew the timing of that event was unimportant. Mission had become like a younger sister to me. I wanted to hold her in my arms wipe her tears away. If I could I would have gone to the wreckage of Taris, and put it back like it had been even if it took several lifetimes. If I had to use my bare hands and my own blood as mortar I would have done it gladly. Zaalbar was sworn to me, and my oath to him would have been doubly violated if that occurred.

I didn't want the Force if I would have to do something like that with it!

Master Vrook was not there, which made me happy in a vague way. I came up to the other masters, and instead of standing, I fell to my knees and told them everything I had seen during that horrible vision. I told them in a leaden voice, and found myself crying as I did. Part of me would be ripped away in an instant if they judged it necessary. I would go on living, but never feeling the Force ever again, never knowing what I might have been, or done with it. Like having eyes, but knowing that you were to be blinded.

I didn't care.

I finally ran down. Kneeling in silence. "I can't go on with this if that will happen." I whispered, "I can't put their lives in danger not from Malak but from me!" I looked up, barely seeing them through my tears. "Take this from me, I know you can. Make my mind a blank and fill it as you will. I don't want-" I looked away. "-I don't want to become that person."

"What makes you think you will?" Asked a gentle voice. I looked back. Somewhere during the recital, Master Vrook had come in. His face was impassive, but in his eyes I could see pain. He walked over, kneeling beside me. "People go through their lives with choices all around them We who use the Force are most sorely tried because our choices can harm those we love more than ourselves. We always walk that knife blade. Vandar, Zhar," He laughed softly, "Even I. Will you listen to me for once?"

"Always, Master." He looked sad at that.

"The Force can give you visions of the future. But some are not true though they can be if we do not take care. They are the potential in all of us, the evil we could do if we do not restrain ourselves. I believe that is what you saw. There will be a time of great test for you before you confront Malak, a time when your entire existence and all of ours will rise or fall on what you do. You must be strong for all of us. For this Twi-lek girl, for the Wookiee, even for the Mercenary who you now have following you like a tame Kath hound. You will send them to hell, or save their lives with your actions."

I nodded jerkily. Then I hugged him, burying my head against his chest as I cried. I felt his discomfort, and one of his hands patted me jerkily. "Now no more of this. Master Zhar awaits your final tests."

I never felt less ready than that moment. I walked into the training room and fell to my knees again.

"Stand, Apprentice." Zhar said softly. I stood, and he watched me for several moments before he spoke. "Do you honestly feel so lacking in worth?"

"I must, Master. I had a vision of killing a girl I love as a sister, a Wookiee that has sworn a life debt to me, damning me twice over. Not only seeing them killed, but being the instrument on their deaths! What manner of animal am I?" I looked at him.

"Apprentice, do you deny what Master Vrook has said to you?" He asked.

"No Master. But what he said suggests that I have the potential to be that monster."

"As do we all, girl." Zhar replied. "Do you think we who are Masters merely have found a way to immediately decide what is right or wrong and miraculously follow it?" He shook his head with a sad smile. "Exar Kun was close to being a master, but he struck down Master Vodo-Siosk Baas on the very floor of the Republic Senate to show his disdain. Ajunta Poll had been a master when he led the exiles and created what are now the Sith two millennia ago. A Master has even more to fear than a mere Apprentice, child. We have greater powers, and our fall is farther. Do you believe that you cannot stand against this darkness within yourself?"

"Master, is it not written 'The darkness within ourselves is always the true enemy'?"

"Yes. Now, do you believe that?"

"Yes Master." I closed my eyes, then opened them. "In war, fighting the enemy, I considered what I did and might do. All my life when I saw the strong use their strength to bully others, when I discovered that all the Wookiee I had seen before Zaalbar were slaves. To me owning another being, knowing that it despairs, and not caring, that is darkness beyond the fury that had risen in me at the thought. But when I killed the Gamorreans that had put a collar on Zaalbar, I had not felt anger, or hate. Or rage. What I felt was pity. They had made themselves less than sentient by their actions, and while I had to kill them, part of me wanted to put a collar on them for a time. Make them live like one of those they had so tormented, with no hope of rescue, then let them go so they would always remember what they had done."

He looked at me. "You have done in the past weeks what some have failed to do in a decade, young Apprentice. Your potential is unlimited. We cannot even imagine what heights you will scale if you stay in the light.

"But we have no more time. We must begin your final tests. You may fail them. This does not mean you cannot go on within the order. But we must reconsider sending you upon this quest. While we have taken time, more than we wished, we have taken all we can. Are you ready?"

I straightened my shoulders. "If I must be ready, I will be ready."

He nodded. "You have read the Jedi Code."

Of course I had. It was five books with a total of almost 6,000 pages among them. I nodded.

"Most students never realize that the Code you have read can be expressed very simply. That is the first step to being a Padawan. Answer these correctly;

"There is no emotion."

I paused. Unbidden, words came to me. "There is peace."

"There is no ignorance."

"There is knowledge."

"There is no passion."

"There is serenity."

"There is no chaos."

"There is harmony."

"There is no death."

"There is the Force." I felt a welling of emotion in me. Suddenly I saw all those petty rules I had read, all of those judgments by Masters long dust and the words were right somehow. I also knew that I could take the youngest apprentice and teach him these simple words, these simple answers, and it would mean nothing unless he felt them within himself. It isn't the words that bind the Jedi to our cause; it is the ideals, and living our lives by them.

Zhar smiled. "Jedi are not the Masters of the Republic, we are its guardians. We guide those we council toward the light not by force, but by example. How can you be an honest judge if you allow passion, emotion, chaos, and ignorance to stop you?

"How can we move among those who do not know the Force except as we do? One small fish in the vast school. Above all, we should have no pride in our robes, or unique weapon, or power. If we ever thought ourselves better than those were care for, we would be no better that the Sith." He looked at me with relief in his eyes. "Well done. Go now to Master Dorak. Tell him I have sent you."

I walked back through the complex. Dorak was busy in the library as always. "This might be the clue we sought!" He said, holding up the book I had found. "But how did Revan know to read it?"

I stood there a moment, then I walked to the stacks. Dorak watched me, following with a puzzled look on his face. I reached up, pulling down a slim book. I opened it, flipping through the pages with all the haste the ancient book could stand. Then I stopped. " 'It is believed on many worlds that the Force came to our Galaxy from outside, brought by a people steeped in the Dark side. From them, it is also believed, came the secret of the Hyper drive. Those and the many ruins mentioned on such planets as Dantooine and Korriban by Webelori's translation of the ancient texts of Korriban are their doing'."

I handed it to him. He took it, and looked at the spine. " 'Before the Republic Stood: What is known of the Galaxy'. By Ajunta Poll." He read.

I stared at the book. I had never been in this library before we came to Dantooine, never seen that book. But I had known it was here, and found it.

"Well done, Apprentice. What may I do for you?"

"Master Zhar sent me."

"Ah yes, the crystal." He led me to his desk, opening a case. "We have several of each color. You do know about the crystals."

"Yes." The crystals were called Adegan or Ilum crystals. First discovered in the Adega system. They were formed by the Force itself it was believed, made as other crystals have been formed through centuries of pressure and heat within planets. Yet these were unique. First, they are colored, each it's own unique color of the spectrum. The Red crystals were the most common. The Dark Jedi used them because they were easy to obtain. Then there were the Blue, green and yellow which were also common, though rare in comparison to red. Then the unique colors, violet, rose or amethyst. That is why so many Jedi have light sabers in those colors.

"When you build your first lightsaber, you chose the color of the part of the order you feel you should represent. It is, in this instance, the choice you have made of your calling as a Jedi. The Guardian is blue so-"

"Wait." I stopped him. "Please, there are others, yes?"

"Of course there are." He fell into the pedantic mode he did so well.  
"Blue is the Guardian. The warriors of the order. When people speak of us as the Jedi Knights, it is the Guardians they usually think of. When fight we must the Guardian is in the vanguard. Next of course are the Sentinels. They watch for the evil, and bring it to light. They search for evil, ferreting it out where ever it might be. Their color is yellow.

"The fewest of our order are the Consular. They are the negotiators, the judges of the order. When strife is to be averted, it is the Consular who is assigned. They must always remember that balance is the key to peace. When a Jedi chooses to be a Consul, she is given a green crystal."

"I know I can be a Guardian, but I do not feel that it is my path, Master." I apologized. "I have spent too much of my life dealing death and avoiding it. I feel that there is more to my life than that, and would chose another path."

"Well, back when there were thousands of us, they had a test the administered. Will you accept my judgment in this?"

"In all things, Master."

"Very well. "You observe two men locked in what appears to be a death struggle. One is struck down, and begs for his life from the ground. What do you do?"

"Why are they fighting? Is the man on the ground innocent? Easier to confront them to find out why they are in such turmoil, then deal with the problem, whether it be them or whatever has put them in this position. If the man who is attacking is wrong, stop him. If the man on the ground is the aggressor at least attempt to convince his attacker to show mercy. Beyond that I have no reason to intervene."

"Ah." He nodded. "You are in combat with a dark Jedi. He retreats for a moment. Maybe he is tired, maybe he feels that he is losing, maybe he has been injured. What do you do?"

"Master, a Dark Jedi was once one of us. Something caused him to embrace the dark. I would try to find this out. No one is completely in the Dark or the light. Perhaps my words can return him."

"Yes. You must enter a fortress to gain information. Before you is the gate, and armed guards. What do you do?"

"Are the guards my enemy? Is it possible they can be swayed by reason? I would approach them, and ask admittance. If they refuse, then I can consider a more violent options.

"I am beginning to see a pattern. You have been sent to assist a settlement in a dispute. It is rumored that Dark Jedi and Sith have infiltrated, and are causing this unrest. What do you do first?"

"Are there really Dark Jedi?" I asked. "Is it perhaps discontent that has been there for a long time, or because of recent actions by the government? Dishonest governments have tried to use claims of evil machinations to sway the Jedi Council and Senate before. There would be records, and those would be my first goal. If there was no time of unrest before, if the government was been benign, or at least not tending to outright oppression, then I will agree that it might be agents of an enemy. At that time I would discern how they might have arrived, and what they plan."

He looked at me for a long moment. Then he pulled down another box, opening it. On a strip of black silk a dozen green crystals lay in the sequence of their hues. "Chose what you would have Consular-Candidate." There was one stone the green of Kalendra's eyes, the green of a shallow sea in a storm. I lifted it gently. "Very well. Go to Master Vandar."

I walked back to the room where Master Vandar taught. There were ten children between five and eleven there. Heads covered by helmets playing a game of sorts. A remote floated in the center, and it fired a bolt of energy at one of the children. That child deflected it across the circle, where another child deflected it at an angle at another student who then deflected it at another.

"Continue." Vandar turned to me. I held out my hand with the crystal, and he sighed. He brought me to a workbench. "Construct your lightsaber. Let me see it when you are done." He turned back as another bolt entered the pattern.

I opened the drawers in order. Beam emitters, apertures, matrices, both slide and knob controls for adjusting length and intensity. Dial or color strip diagnostic readouts, Activation systems from simple studs to flat plates to treadle switches. Then the delicate lattice works of the crystal focus. Last were power cells and casings to hold it all.

I chose a black handle 30 centimeters long. With the tools I began forming the inner workings of the weapon I would bear. The emitter was housed with four prongs to act as a hand guard, the aperture set in place. Then the emitter matrix was assembled, and installed. I chose slide controls, so I would not have to look when adjusting them, color strip readouts, with a simple activating stud.

I worked hardest on the lattice. There were three sockets, and I carefully set the green crystal I had been given in the center, using a loupe to assure that it was placed correctly. The facets had to align just so for the beam to impinge on it, and be focused into the emitter array. I felt that it was right, and delicately tightened the clamps. If they were too loose, the stone would move, ruining the focus at an inopportune moment. But if they were too tight, they would actually warp the surface of the crystal minutely. I set them where I felt they should be, then slid the assembly into the handle, mounting them in place. Finally I ran the power leads down to the power pack, and sealed the access plate.

A lightsaber is unique to the user in that no one ever gives instruction beyond the simplest terms on how to construct one. It is one of those devices that owes as much to artistry as to technology in its design. No two lightsabers are the same, even when made by the same person. There are entire cases of ancient deactivated lightsabers in the archives, and by choosing a Jedi's name, you can track their lives by the changes they made in later weapons. The 'blade' can be adjusted from half a meter in length to a meter and a half. Some can be tuned so lightly that they can burn the hair from a man's hand without burning or cutting the flesh beneath it, or set so powerful that they will carve the armor of a vehicle like butter.

I paused, then lifted it. The weight wasn't right, pulling to the pommel a little, and I reopened the case, adding an extension in the emitter matrix of a denser material. When I reassembled it, it felt right in my hand.

The students now had five bolts bouncing, and they were shrieking like any child at play would. Then together they arched all of the bolts toward me as if on command.

My hand came up, and the sea-foam green of my blade lanced out in a whirling circle. I directed the bolts to the sides away from them, into pads of ablative material that smoked as they struck. Vandar had spun as his students had done this, now looked disapproving at the world in general.

"Let me see your handiwork, apprentice." I walked over, handing it to Master Vandar.

"I apologize, Master. I acted precipitously."

He grunted. "Children will be children, even here. Whether they are eight or twenty-eight. I should have warned you."

"What, and ruined their fun?"

He chuckled. "There is that." He flicked the blade into life, running through all the adjustments as if he'd done it a thousand times. He had of course, but never with my saber specifically. "I have never seen a crystal set so smoothly by a novice." He shut it off, and handed it back to me. "Take this to master Zhar."

I bowed and walked out. One of the boys sent a bolt at my back as their game started again, and I bounced it back at him. He deflected it at the last second, the grin widening on his face before he turned back to his classmates.

Master Zhar had moved into the courtyard, meditating quietly. I approached, fell into a meditation seat, and floated in the air as I waited. A time passed, how much I do not know. If you have meditated, you understand what I mean. The Master opened his eyes, and wordlessly held out his hand. I set the lightsaber in his grip, and he looked the casing over with a narrow eye. He flicked the beam into existence, looking at me with an unreadable expression, then moved it smoothly through part of Kata I had done before him; the equivalent of a man humming as he worked.

"Well done." He stood, and I joined him. "There is one final test, and it is one we face all our lives. This will be the first time for you, but I feel you are ready." I nodded. "There is darkness in the galaxy, and it is our duty to face it. Such a darkness has overtaken a grove to the south and east of here, a darkness that grows with every minute. It infects the Kath hounds native to Dantooine, driving them into madness. They attack people with a savagery at odds with their nature. This must be dealt with. You must find the source of this evil."

"What must I do when I find it?"

"That is your test, apprentice. The choice of how it will be handled is up to you. But remember this. No one that has gone into the dark is ever lost to us. They can be saved if you will put the effort into doing so. This takes time, but never is time so precious that you must ignore the option. You may take two of your companions, no more. Because this is your test, Bastila cannot be among them." He handed the lightsaber back to me, and I put it on my belt.


	10. Dantooine: Justice

Dantooine: Justice

Canderous

The heavy blaster rifle lay on the workbench as I worked with it. Patience is the first thing a young warrior learns, and I am by no means young. I am Canderous Ordo of clan Ordo. My deeds are enshrined in the halls of my people, and for forty of the Republic's standard years I had fought across the Galactic Rim.

Since Mand'alor Our Progenitor conquered a small flyspeck of a planet, we have been warriors, and our people breed them like others breed their farm animals. For my people it is the honor and glory of battle that draws us, shapes us, and defines us. For each of us it is through combat that we prove our worth gain respect, earn our fortunes and determine who is worthy of passing on his genes to the next generation.

Not long after we left Taris, the woman that I now allied myself with had sat with me, and discussed what my people know and feel and believe. When I spoke to her of what I have just recorded she asked "Is that why the Mandalorians attacked us?"

I corrected her, which I have not bothered to do with no _Autisse; _non_ Mando'a,_ since the war's end. "We call ourselves merely the Mando'a, as our leader has always been the Mand'alor of our people of the planet Mand'alor. Only those who have not spent the time to learn of us call us Mandalorian.

"No. Twenty years ago, we were approached by the Sith, still licking their wounds after the war of Exar Kun. They brought not trinkets and technologies, but an idea that struck our people. Why not prove ourselves in a war that would be recorded as long as the Galaxy existed? Fight an enemy that would set forever the name of the Mando'a in history. They wanted us to strike at the Republic.

"For my people it was a siren call of battle. The Republic was weakened by the war of Exar Kun. The Sith were worse off. To defeat the Sith would have been child's play, but the Republic..."

"But you lost!"

"Win, lose, it doesn't matter. As long as the fight is glorious and worthy of those that died. The honor for a glorious losing battle is no less than that which leads to victory, only the one who lost is not there a lot of the time to garner it. His or her children are still there to see it and that renown is theirs as well through their blood. The glory of defeating your Republic, of facing impossible odds, and knowing that we can win, but will probably not, that is what drives us."

"And what of those defeated?"

"You know gamblers, what do they lose? Money. Coins or jewels that were never going to remain theirs forever. We gamble only one way, and that is with our very lives. If there is nothing of true worth at stake, you possessions, your world, your life, battle is pointless. To fight a battle with no possessions to take, no worlds to conquer, no lives to end is waste.

"When we fight nothing is held back. Everything we are and have is thrown into it. It is the true test that defines your very life. The struggle against death and oblivion."

"So your people seek death."

I shook my head, smiling. It was almost as if she were one of the children in the training camps.

"Death is nature's way. All things die in their time. A true warrior is the one that Death chases, pursues with single-minded intensity, yet fails to catch. Such has always been our way."

I stopped speaking for a time. "But our people had begun to change in small ways that boded the end of our race. There was a generation of those who fought nowhere but in the training pits rising now to command. Leaders of Squads, Phalanxes, even armies that gave of their mouths to the glory of war, yet had never felt it's kiss, had never given their heart or their blood to it. When the story circle was opened, all they could do was listen. The clans were being led by those that would not last an instant against those of my generation who had seen it, and if we had ever fought amongst ourselves again would have fallen even though they outnumbered us in their hundreds. The entire race was dying from the inside like a diseased tree, and the rot was spreading rapidly.

"The last Mand'alor of Mand'alor was of my generation, his own son was one of this other kind. He feared for our entire race if his son did not learn the truth of our existence. He committed us to the course of fighting the Republic in hopes that the new war would blood those and bring them into the fold, as they should have been. We might fall, but it would be as we should, from battle, not from the weakness of our own people. He spent a dozen of your years attacking just the fringes, the unaligned worlds and polities. Then, finally, when he felt there was no more he could do to train them, we struck.

"But he failed. When the fire of battle touched us, it wasn't the diseased tissue that burned, but the good. The weak stayed home, or found their niche in garrison troops and administration. What we would have left to _neverd_, civilians; they grasped and called important. Not all of course, for even a diseased tree will stand many seasons before its fall. But enough that when the war had ended, the dross was greater in weight than the precious metal we had squandered. The Clans were scattered over the rim on a few meager worlds.

"That may be the end of my people. Many still stalk about wearing our armor, speaking our language, defaming our heritage, whose only claim to it is their blood. One such was Bendak Starkiller back on Taris, who cannot even claim that blood.

"Even at the height of our power, the Clans were not a serious threat to any capable of standing against us. Those that fought us tried to use the weak among us as the reasons we fought. The greed the brutality the spite, and the bloodlust. But they know that is a lie. The Mando'a are still the premier warriors of the Galaxy. They look at us and see that, and fear us still.

"We wanted the challenge of battle, as we always have. The honor and glory, win or lose. We lost."

She sat there looking at me, and I knew that she felt pity for my people. A brave race brought low not by the war, but by our own society. "And how did Canderous Ordo of Clan Ordo end up on Taris?"

"Home is not what it was for us that really believed in our old ways. It was better to spread into the Galaxy, earn again our honors, and hope that some few would learn it at home again. Ships came from many peoples, and our warriors, and those who only claimed such left in their multitudes. I had finished a contract when I arrived on Taris. Not a lucrative one and truth be told little honor accrued from it.

"Davik needed men and spoke of great honor and glory, but what honor was there? Crushing the idiots that fought him, pitting a few months swagger against forty years of struggle was something a stripling could have beaten. Confronting the Swoop gangs had its moments, but even they were weak and would have been defeated in the end.

"When I look back upon my life. At the thousands who fell facing me. The deaths I have encompassed with my own hands, with the hands of those that followed me, I weep. Not for my past, for what has been written will never be undone. No, I weep for my people in the future."

When we arrived at Dantooine, she had to spend time with the Jedi, and because of that, I was left pretty much to myself. The Wookiee spoke a language I had never learned, the Twi-lek girl looked at me as if I had three heads, and I was of no interest to Bastila.

This left only Carth, and when she was there, Danika to speak to.

Among my people there is a saying, 'Society is only warfare on another plane'. One evening, I opened battle on that level with Carth. The one thing I missed from home was the Warrior's story circle. The telling and retelling of our deeds. It is not proper to merely speak of them unless asked, and it is good manners to let others go first. We had settled down to a meal. Danika was engrossed in a Holocron, those odd devices only the Jedi or others who can touch the Force can use.

"Carth. You fought my people during the Mandalorian wars, didn't you?" He nodded. "We might have faced each other in combat. Tell me of the battles you fought, and whom you fought alongside."

He shook his head. "I try not to think of the battles I have seen too much. The horrors of war are not something to relive over a meal. I save them for my nightmares."

The comment bothered me. "Horrors? My people glory in the press of battle. We gain honor among our people by the retelling of our exploits. The young learn what it is to be a warrior. I am disappointed that you never learned that lesson."

"Most of our peoples never learned to view war as yours did." Danika commented softly.

"I am not a warrior." Carth bit out. "I was a soldier. There is a difference. Warriors attack and conquer. They prey on those too weak to fight back. Soldiers defend and protect the innocent. Usually from warriors."

"Nice speech. I bet you tell yourself that every night to stave off your nightmares. But my people have done what you are not. We accept what nature and chance has made us. I don't have to justify what I have done in my life with pallid words. My victories in my record is all I need to show my worth."

"Victories!" Carth almost spat. "And how do the defeats measure in this paean of martial glory? You lost. You not only lost. You lost to us!"

"Of course we did!" I looked at him surprised. "When the war began you outnumbered us five to one in ships, and ten to one in personnel. You had more supplies than you knew what to do with, which helped because we captured enough of them to keep our own troops going. You had the Jedi, the one thing we did not have, and yet you still almost lost to us before they joined the fight. It has been four years, and still the Republic trembles at the name Mand'alor!"

"Nice speech. I bet you tell yourself that every night to cover the fact that you lost! How many millions died when your kind committed atrocities?"

"The ones that occurred, or the ones your government thought up?"

"How about Serafin 7? The murder of ten thousand miners when you invaded?"

"It is said among my people 'to know honor, you must know what dishonor is'. Goortel led the fleet at Serafin. He was not a warrior; he was one of the weak ones that share my blood. He was dealt with afterward. The sentence for his infamy was _Kashtrial_. Death by his own hand. When he proved too weak to follow through as honor demanded, we dealt with him as we would with any of his ilk." I glared at him. "We took care of those of our own that acted shamefully. That raped, that pillaged, that murdered instead of facing the dead in battle. Can you say the same? What of Admiral Quintain at Kostigan's Drift? If I remember correctly he was made a lord of the Republic for his victory." I added sarcastically.

"I was at Kostigan's Drift." He bit out. "Quintain faced a fleet defending a supply depot. He fought through them, and bombed the depot."

"Yes. I was there as well. The 'fleet' he faced was fifteen corvettes against thirty frigates and corvettes. They were not pushed aside, he slipped by them in the dark matter belt at the edge of the system. He could have fought them and crushed them but he didn't have the guts to match weapons with them. When he was past them he bombed the entire continent where our depot was. Killing what, the fifty Mando'a that guarded it? And what of the million odd civilians that lived there? If we had done it every officer in the fleet would have been executed afterward by us!"

"There was your damn jamming! He couldn't target as precisely as we wished!"

"Jamming! The only 'jamming' you faced was the electromagnetic affects of the dark matter you had hidden in! Our fleet didn't engage you then because they were waiting for our own instruments to clear! I know because I was on the bridge of one of them when the pursuit began!"

"I think that is quite enough discussion." Bastila commented tartly.

As you can see, war without the bloodshed. But it was fun while it lasted.

I leaned back, examining what I had been doing. Danika had ordered the parts I needed to tweak the weapon to it's maximum potential. I hoped that soon I would find something worthy of its thunder.

"Canderous." I looked behind me. Danika stood there. Instead of the Echani armor she had worn, she wore a simple robe as the Jedi did. Part of me was saddened. She had looked like a war bride before, and that vision remained in my mind of her. Now she looked like all of the faceless Jedi I had fought in my time. "I would like you to accompany me."

"Just say the word."

She held up her hand. "Will bringing Carth be a burden?"

I shook my head. "A burden for Carth perhaps. But one day he will see his true self."

I gathered my gear, putting on my armor, and followed her to the cockpit. Carth was doing as I had, assuring that his weapons, his controls were in perfect working order. He started to smile, but it was wiped away when I entered after her. "I would like you to accompany me, Carth." She looked at me. "I should have said Us."

"Where?"

There is a final test I must endure to become a Padawan. I am supposed to have witnesses, and I chose you two because if there is anything out there that is a danger, I can think of no one better able to defend themselves."

He looked at me, then stood, picking up his weapons belt. I had seen him back there tinkering with his weapons as well.

She led us through the Academy, past all of those people doing what only the Jedi knew.

"I will wait no longer!" A bluff man was forcing his way past a small woman, screaming. I would have simple cold cocked him, but the girl who was obviously a student, didn't have the training. "I have waited and waited and you Jedi have done nothing! I demand justice! The Sanderal are a blight on this planet and must be expunged!"

Danika moved to intercept him, and he slowed. "Get out of my way, woman!"

"Sir pushing around students does not make your cause more just." She said coldly. "And shouting does not mean you are more quickly heard, only more loudly."

"I do not need your platitudes!" He started to reach out. I couldn't see her face from where I was, but it stopped him cold.

"Heard you have been. Loudly." Master Vandar walked out of the council room, followed by Master Vrook. They came to stand beside Danika. "Apprentice, this is our business." Vandar said.

She bowed, stepping aside. "Yes master." Vandar then turned to the angry man.

"Mr. Matale, the Council has already promised to investigate your son's disappearance, but you must be patient. Your accusations have no proof and until we can finish our investigations, all you will do is incite further violence. If your claims are false, the hatred you spread will only linger."

"False! My son is missing, and he was in the Sanderal estates when it happened! That much our own authorities have proven!"

"Authorities that work on your lands and answer to you alone. Others do not say as much." Master Vrook said.

"My officers are the best trained on the planet and were instructed to look for clues, not make decisions regarding them."

Vandar shook his head as if he knew where the argument was going. "Your anger with the Sanderal is well documented. As is theirs with you. If there is no evidence, you will follow that anger as a river runs downhill. In our deliberations we have discovered many possible reasons for Shen's disappearance. We must continue our investigations, and you must learn patience."

He spat. "You Jedi! Good for nothing but talk! I will wait here no longer! I will deal with this problem myself!" He turned and stormed away.

Vandar watched him, then turned to Danika. "As much effort as we must put into this war with the Sith and Malak, we Jedi cannot simply abandon our other duties, Apprentice. We have promised to look into this matter, and we are, but time is not on our side.

"Part of the problem is that Casus, son and heir of Nurik Sanderal has been missing for two days now. The Sanderal have accused the Matale, but again there was no proof. Shen's disappearance has merely added fuel to the fire. If Shen Matale is dead, we must prove beyond a shadow of doubt when and how he died, and who is responsible. If the Sanderal are guilty, they must be punished. But the hatred between the two families started almost from their arrival. If the matter stays as it is, or we do not find the culprit, it will flash into a bloody feud that will not end as long as both families live. We must not allow that to happen.

"Study and training is necessary to perfect our art, of course. But the Jedi is not a cloistered order with no contact with the Galaxy. Our influence and our teachings must extend beyond these walls."

"Yes." Vrook said. "It is in the real world that we prove ourselves worthy of the title Jedi. You would do well to remember that, young apprentice."

Danika bowed, and we went on. The door to the outside world was just another door; I could have blasted it with a single round. Danika walked up to the protocol droid assigned to the entrance. "I am Danika Wordweaver."

"My programming includes your appearance, Apprentice." He said smoothly. "You are allowed full access to the facilities, and may leave them at your discretion." The door opened. "May the Force be with you."

We walked out onto a wide esplanade. Some people were there, talking in small groups, walking together. Ever present were other young Jedi, though these were all in their teens and mid twenties.

As we walked, I noticed a man standing near a bridge leading out into a wild expanse. He saw us, and I could feel the hate radiating off him at the sight of me. I'm used to that. Being Mando'a means others hate and fear you on sight.

As we reached him, he drew a knife, and screamed, charging at me. Carth drew, and I lowered my weapon to point at the man. But Danika's lightsaber flicked into life, and she cut, the blade of the knife falling to the ground, leaving only the hilt.

"What means this?" She asked coldly. The lightsaber died.

"You Jedi! How long must we face attacks by night from his kind?" He jerked his head in my direction. "I come to ask for justice, and what do I see? A Jedi with a Mandalorian butcher in tow! You sit in your enclave and preach love and light while the rest of us suffer!"

"What are you talking about?"

"Those Mandalorian scum murdered my daughter!"

"Yet you stand here, alive." I said. "What manner of father are you?"

"What was I supposed to do?" The man screamed at me. "A dozen Mandalorians and their Duros allies came to our land. Took what we had! When Ilse fought them their leader dragged her away. They used her, then brought her out naked and bloody, and shot her right in front of me!"

"What were their names." I asked. My face must have been cold, but fires burned in me. How dare they defame our people!

"I only heard Sherruk. Their leader." The man glared at me. "Why? Are you going to sing songs of their bravery?"

"I don't know what the Jedi will do, man. But I, Canderous of Clan Ordo will rip out his heart and bring it back to you."

"Find them, kill them!" The man started to shout again, then suddenly collapsed, crying. Danika knelt beside him, her hand on his shoulder.

"We will find them." She promised.

We walked out into the plains in silence. "Why, Canderous?" She asked after a time. "Why did you make such an oath?"

"To kill someone who cannot fight back is bad enough. How much honor does a warrior win by killing the defenseless? But to dishonor her then kill her, that is worse."

"Why? Seems the Mandalorians did a lot of that during the war." Carth said.

I spun. "If you do not know what you are speaking about, you should be silent! Yes there were those that have done such things. We considered them as worse than you ever would. More of those that killed the innocent died by our hands then ever stood in one of your Republic courts!"

"What about war brides then? What is that beyond giving a woman into slavery and rape?"

"Again your words issue from an empty head! When we fought an enemy, our _Soochir _record all that was seen. If a woman fought us, we judged her from that record, and tried always to take her alive.

"Do you think our women are nothing but brood mares? They stand with us in battle, protect our backs, bear our children, and no on who has met one in battle can say they are unable to fight. Those women among the enemy we fought who were judged worthy we named war brides and a bride price set. Then they were asked-_asked_ if they would accept it. If she accepted marriage, that money went in trust to her and her children. If she refused that price was paid to the woman, and she was declared one of our own. She had her own household, her own lands, her own say in her life. Warriors would come and tell of their deeds hoping to woo her as a wife.

"If she refused the price or later refused to marry within three of your years, she was promised transportation to a neutral planet if they wished. Yet even then they were honored! If we fought the son of a war bride later, it was a great honor.

"But rape? How can a man trust any woman to guard his back that he has used so shamefully? How can he stand in the circle and boast of such an act? Yes our young have raped. We punish them as the children they are. But a Warrior trained and bred does not unless he has no use for living."

The walk continued in silence.

Danika

We headed south through the Matale lands. There were Kath hounds, and where possible we avoided them. The smaller female predators stand half a meter at the shoulder. They are the hunters of the packs. The Males are called Horned Kath hounds because when they reach maturity, they grow two massive forward sweeping horns and grow to almost two meters at the shoulder. While they can be used as weapons, the horns are for the mating cycle. A male would attack and hope to drive away another male and capture his females. The unattached males wander alone, and are considered quite dangerous.

What disturbed me was not the Kath hounds but the men that streamed into the Matale lands. Most had the look of drifters, looking for work. But others were hard-eyed mercenaries. Some of them spoke of both Ahlan Matale and Rurik Sanderal putting out the call for soldiers to fight. The open fighting that the Council foresaw was only days away.

We came over a small rise, and I stopped. A small group stood down there, surrounding a farmer. I could see that three were Duros, and the last- The blue green armor of a Mandalorian.

I started down the slope. As I approached, the Mandalorian grabbed the farmer by his collar. "Not good enough! Are you trying to slip out of your taxes to us?"

"Please, that's all I have! Take what you want, my wife, my children, but-"

The blaster in the Mandalorian's hand spoke, blasting a hole through him. "Wife and children. Now that's a thought."

"Go to the dishonored!" A roar in Mando'a was followed by a blast from the heavy blaster Canderous carried. The bolt, punched in, causing a steam explosion. Blood and organs spewed out, stunning the Duros. I was among them before they even reacted.

Carth shot one, I killed the other two. Canderous had walked the rest of the way down the hill, and stood over the Mandalorian body. He knelt, ripping off the helmet. The man he looked down on was younger than I was. Canderous took a chain from the corpse's neck, snapping it to pull it out. There was a small datapad attached to it. "Rander Tubliek of Clan Sokor." He looked down, then spat in the still face. "Long will clan Sokor work to clean this stain." He took the datapad, and put it in his pouch.

"What is that?" I asked.

"A Mando'a always carries his _Soochir_. His soul of battle." He touched the pouch. "Every deed he does is recorded, and if he speaks of battle in the circle, he can prove his acts with it. Also, it is believed that when he dies, the Gods of war judge him by it. The gatekeeper reads his acts, and judges whether he deserves to even speak to the War Gods. If not he is cast off the bridge into the pit of souls, where he must fight his way back into life, and begin again. If he is passed by the gatekeeper, the War Gods also read it. If they are still considered pallid, and worthless, the spirit is thrown into the pit of souls, but nearer the top, where one day it can return to life as a warrior and try again. If he was a good warrior, but not outstanding, he is thrust back into life at that time.

"If he is a great warrior, his spirit is sent to join one of the Gods' war bands, there to prepare for the day the Universe ends. Every one of them will fight to keep the Universe alive, and every one that dies on that day is another second the universe will exist." He clenched his fist. "It is also said that if an enemy takes your _Soochir_ and it does not reach your clan, the spirit will wander until that day, and beg their chances of the Gods to no avail, not even worthy of a new life." He looked at the body. "Wander until I decide to return this."

I set the swoop bikes for auto travel, and their destination was originally the police station in the nearest settlement. I had looked at the armament they carried, and instead set them to go to the enclave. We loaded the bodies onto the farm lifter, and set it to follow. Then we continued on. To the south was the Sanderal lands, and here as with the other land we had passed, we came upon groups that were bound this time for the Sanderal estate.

We cut across the land, past the great house, and continued. In the farthest reaches of the Sanderal lands, I spied several young Kath hounds worrying a body. We chased the cubs away. He had been dead for more than two weeks. Carth found a backpack, and he held out a datapad. It belonged to one Casus Sanderal. I downloaded the information on the datapad. "From what I heard, Casus disappeared, and Sanderal accused the Matale of his murder."

"No chance of that." Carth knelt. "A blaster bolt would have scarred the bones; a blade or club would leave obvious marks. Even after this time the marks would still be there. What does the datapad say?"

"He was exploring a ruin near here. Seems he was quite the amateur archeologist." I slipped it into my pouch. "We must return to the Sanderal home. Nurik must be told."

"Take it easy, Danika, Carth. But we're being watched." Canderous said. He tilted his head as if trying to crack his neck. "Five people coming this way. Two are in Mando'a armor."

I stayed kneeling, Carth beside me. Canderous moved around us, putting himself at the farthest from the approaching people. He needed the extra standoff distance for his massive weapon.

"Stand slowly, woman." A voice called in a flat filtered tone. A Mandalorian appeared out of a camouflage field a few meters away from us. Another appeared to the left and behind him. Three Duros came over the crest, covering us with their hand weapons. I stood slowly as instructed, Carth moving to his feet and moving to the left to give me a clear field.

"Well she's a pretty one, isn't she Mart?" The first Mandalorian asked. "Think Sherruk will leave any of her for us?"

"Not likely, Coord." The other replied. "We'll have to hope he gets tired of her eventually."

"Is it not tradition that before battle a Mandalorian must give his full name?" I asked.

"Battle!" Coord snorted. "As if three wastlings could be a battle for us! Woman you're a piece of property now. Your men will die facing us one to one in a dueling circle, or if they are too cowardly, will wear a slave collar. It is said, 'A herd beast is not a warrior, and not even a child gets honor from slaughtering it'."

"It is also said that 'only a fool cooks a meal from something he has not caught'." Canderous snorted.

"Who are you to quote the precepts of the Mando'a to us?" Mart asked.

"I am Canderous Ordo of Clan Ordo, worm. I am your death."

I moved, the lightsaber springing to life. Coord went down before me, and Mart was caught in the blast from Canderous' rifle. Carth had drawn, and a burst of fire swept the Duros away. Canderous again gathered the datapads. I climbed the ridge to discover yet more swoop bikes. Again I set them for the Jedi enclave.

"Mart Coomar, of clan Troska." Canderous said. "And Coord Lambec of Clan Kootir. More dishonored houses." He spat. "These are the type you would call us all, Carth. I have shown you in words and actions how we deal with them." Carth was silent.

Sanderal

Danika

We returned to the Sanderal home. It was a large building with a landing pad on its flat roof. A freighter was parked there, and men were unloading supplies from it. A war droid patrolled before the door. I approached it, and it stopped, weapon training on me.

The droid hummed to itself. "Due to the legal ruling of 1100 hundred hours this morning, both the Sanderal and the Matale are banned from hiring human warriors. While your interest is appreciated, there is no further business to discuss."

"I am Danika Wordweaver of the Jedi Enclave. I must speak with Nurik Sanderal."

It buzzed. "Since the Jedi Council suggested that ruling, your presence is not welcome."

"I have knowledge of Casus Sanderal he must hear."

The droid stood silent. "Mr. Sanderal will see you in the entry hall. You are hereby warned that any attempt to pass farther into the house will be deemed an attack, and under Dantooine law, can be dealt with as such."

The entry hall was cool, the hill that had once stood here formed the insulation for the walls. A young girl was there, and greeted us.

"I am Rahasia Sanderal. Casus is my brother. You have news-"

"Rahasia, leave us." Nurik Sanderal was a tall angry dark skinned man. He stopped a few meters from us, flanked by war droids. "Well? You claimed to have news of my son?"

I took the backpack that Carth had been carrying. I lifted out the datapad, and handed it to him. "Casus was coming back from the ruins in the east portion of your lands. He was attacked by Kath-hounds and killed."

His eyes tightened, and he delicately took the datapad. He scanned the last entries, then snorted. "Records can be faked. Go back to your puppet masters Jedi, and tell them that I know the Matale murdered my son. Once I have enough droids delivered I am going to remove that damnable family from this planet. Good day."

"Sir-"

"Damn you woman, there is nothing left to discuss. This will be settled in blood. Good day!"

"Well that could have gone better." Carth commented.

We turned to go, but a figure came from the shadows, Rahasia Sanderal. She looked at the war droid that still waited. "Nurik 4-11-7." She ordered. "You will not record anything for the next ten minutes. You will delete the order that was given to you by me, and return to your station." She looked at us. Then came forward, pressing a key into my hand. "You must save him. Hurry."

"Shen Matale." I said. She nodded.

"My father is a good man, but the anger he holds for the Matale, the death of my mother, Casus disappearing, all of it has driven him to the brink of madness. He has taken Shen and holds him in the back of the house. He is still undecided if he should kill Shen or sell him to slavers. That key will open the storage bay side door. Get him free before my father carries out his plan!" She hurried away.

"No good deed goes unpunished." Canderous said. "We're going to save this boy?"

I considered a life spent in hellish slavery because of grief. Shen being punished for something not his crime. "That, Canderous, was a foolish question."

We left, and walked around the estate until we reached the storage bay. I opened the personnel door, and we entered. The setting sun lighted the interior halls, and we could see easily. I opened a door, and it led to a computer room. "Carth, you are better at this than I am."

He came forward, and began slicing into the system. "All right. Shen is in this room. Down the hall, around the corner to the left. Second door." He logged out, and we raced on.

The door had a mine before it, and Canderous immediately deactivated it. "A directional charge. If we had triggered it, the blast would have gutted that room."

I opened it. Shen Matale was tall, thin, and in his late teens. He stood when we came in, ready for a confrontation but stopped, confused. "You don't work for the Sanderals. Who are you?"

"I am Danika Wordweaver of the Jedi order. This is Canderous Ordo of clan Ordo, and Carth Onasi of the Republic navy. We have come to rescue you."

"What about Rahasia?"

"What?"

"Mr. Sanderal is insane. If I escape, he will assume that Rahasia helped in my rescue, and his fury will vent on her. She might die. I cannot have that on my conscience. Get her out of here first or I will stay and die to protect her!"

I shook my head. "No good deed goes unpunished." I repeated. "Where is Rahasia's room?"

"I'm a prisoner, how would I know?" He asked sarcastically.

We had to run back to the first room. Carth again sliced into the computer. "You know if we were recording this, it would make a great situation comedy." He said as he worked. "Brave rescuers now trying to rescue someone else because the one they came for forgot to pay for their meal or something." I snorted with laughter. I could picture the show, and if I weren't one of the actors, would have been laughing so hard my sides would hurt. "All right, got it. But there are war droids in the area. Wait a- Oh you're just so smart aren't you?" He flicked a few switches. "All right, the droids between us and there are down."

He led us through the halls. The droids stood as if they were statues. We came to the door, and opened it. Rahasia looked up confused. "What are you doing here? Don't tell me you got lost!"

"No." I fought the laughter that threatened to bubble up. What next? A pet that had to be saved as well? "Shen won't leave unless you leave too."

She shook her head with a sad smile. "He would. Shen was always the kind that took in strays." She stood, flinging clothes into a bag. "I will go out the front. Get him out of here."

I nodded, and we went back to the cell. Shen agreed to leave, finally.

I thought for a moment that we had done it all for nothing. As we rounded the house, and Shen and Rahasia were both busy making sure the other was all right, a farm scow breasted the hill, and a dozen war droids poured out of it, followed by Ahlan Matale.

An alarm sounded, and an equal number of war droids poured out of the house behind us, followed by Nurik Sanderal.

"Shen!" Ahlan shouted.

"Father!"

"Mr. Matale!" Rahasia cried.

"Rahasia!" Nurik shouted.

"Father!"

"Mr. Sanderal!"

"Nurik!"

"Ahlan!"

"So, you did have my son!"

"After you murdered mine!"

"I think you should all calm down." I said.

"Father-"

"Shut up!" Nurik shouted.

"It isn't what you think!"

"Shut up!" Ahlan shouted.

"Everyone shut up!" I roared.

"Who do you think you are?" Ahlan growled.

"If I wanted your help, I would have done without!" Nurik said at almost the same time.

"Enough is enough father." Rahasia said. "Nurik 4-11-7! You will go in the house, disarm, and start a diagnostic cycle! Until this is done you will accept no other orders!"

"Ahlan 17-41-32!" Shen shouted. "You will return to the vehicle, and stay there until you return to our home! Until this is done you will accept no other orders!"

The men stood and stared as the droids turned, and followed the orders. Both screamed counter orders but droids are not made to be self-aware. The commands had been given by authorized voices. And the orders explicit.

It hadn't sunk to drama, it was still a farce.

"I am sick of this father!" Shen said. "Everything is the 'evil Sanderal' this and the 'evil Sanderal' that! What about living father? What about a life beyond this hatred?"

"I am happy my mother is dead, father!" Rahasia was crying. "Better that than she see what your hatred has done!"

"I knew you were sniffing around this Sanderal slut-"

"Don't call my daughter a slut!"

"Yes, I agree. I love Rahasia and only your petty bickering has kept us apart." Shen looked to Rahasia. "Come with me."

"Yes. The Jedi will protect us!"

"You are going nowhere-"

"You will do nothing to stop them." I snapped. "Can't you see what is happening here?" I looked from one to the other. "You will lose your children to this, either by locking them up behind walls or they fly from you. Remember when your child was born? The feel of their breath on your neck, the smell of their flesh the first time you held them? The way they looked at you as if you were the center of their universe? Look at them now. Think of the children they will have that you will never see because they cannot visit one without inciting the other to fury." I walked toward Ahlan. "How would it be Ahlan Matale, to know you have a grandchild, but know that your own petty idiocy will assure that you never see him?"

I rounded on Nurik. "Or you, Nurik Sanderal. To know your daughter will bear a daughter, but she will not give it her dead mother's name because that will cause Ahlan to be angry?"

I threw my hands up. "Why don't you both just kill each other? Give them a clean slate in their future lives, and at the same time give them the guilt of your deaths? I know that some peace will come of it.

"But know this, Ahlan Matale, Nurik Sanderal. Their lives will be better if they walked away and never touched this land ever again. Hatred is a crop you both nurture because of something that happened before they were born. Until you are willing to see that, and begin to change, nothing else you do will be worth the effort. Enjoy your lands, your crops, and your herds. And know that all it cost was your children."

I turned to the couple. "I will call a lifter for you both. As much as they like to inflict pain on themselves, you need not inflict it on yourselves by walking to the Enclave."

Rahasia nodded. I called the Council, reported Shen as found and alive, and glared at both of the men until the lifter arrived.

"Rahasia-"

"The Jedi is half your age, but she is wiser than you are father. When both of you can ask us at the same time, together, we can talk."

"Shen-"

"Until you can love the woman who will be my wife, and at least talk civilly with her father, I am not your son."

Both stood stricken as the lifter shot up and toward the North. I took some pity on them. "Children grow, and change. They have to make their own lives away from the parents. Some times it is clean and happy. Other times it is pain on all sides. Talk to each other before you do anything you will regret. Not for me, but for them, and for you." I looked at the vanishing lifter. "What child would be gladdened to know that they have grandparents, but can never see them?"

I walked away from them, two little men in pools of their own misery.

"That wasn't really the Jedi way back there." Carth said.

"What do you mean?"

"Telling them to shut up? Lecturing two of the richest men on the planet as if they were children arguing over a toy?"

"Every now and then, you find those that won't listen to soft words and advice. People you have to slap so hard that they feel the blow a month later. This seemed like that kind of time."

"Next time just save the time and trouble and slap them." Canderous growled. "It's more fun too."

We headed east. The grove was at the bottom of the next pass, and we made good time. "Trouble." Canderous said.

I looked up, off in the distance, swoop bike were circling us. I counted seven. "Mando'a?"

"Three Mando'a, one of them is in Red armor. The rest are Duros." I nodded. Blue or blue green were simple troopers or noncoms. A red suit was a command officer.

"There." Canderous pointed at a bare hill to one side. "We have full 360-degree coverage, and they can't approach unnoticed."

"I don't think they intend to sneak up on us, Canderous."

We trudged up the hill, and waited. Sure enough, the swoop bikes dropped in a spiral, and landed so that we were surrounded. They dismounted, and climbed toward us, weapons at the ready.

Canderous stood, towering over us. He had set down the blaster cannon, and spread his arms wide like a cave bear. "I am Canderous Ordo, of Clan Ordo!" Canderous roared. "The dead in my wake number in the thousands, and my songs will be sung when your pallid clan is dust!" He bellowed a wordless battle cry full of anger and hunger. "What other clan has been so dishonored by your actions upon this world, insects? Clan Troska mourned their honor! Clan Sokor mourns their honor! Clan Kootir mourns their honor!" Canderous said. "Speak honor-less ones!"

The leader had stopped when Canderous issued his challenge. "Clan Ordo has lost its honor as well. We of the new Mandalorian make our own honor. I am Sherruk Zion of Clan Ordo!"

If anything, this infuriated Canderous even more. "Face me then Sherruk of no clan! Face me whelp!" He charged down the hill at them barehanded.

It was like two bull Bantha in a mating fight. Sherruk threw aside his weapon, and they met in a head on charge that would have thrown lesser men ten meters or more. They grappled, and Canderous looked like a maniac as he butted the smaller man off his feet. Sherruk rolled away, coming up then back in.

I looked at Carth. "At least this time I'm not the one charging in." Then I drew my lightsaber.

The Mandalorian to Sherruk's left laughed. "Bring it on, woman!" I'll add that toy to my collection!"

Carth's blaster roared. The last Mandalorian went over with his skull blown open. Then Carth spun, and began laying fire down on the Duros.

I engaged the unnamed Mandalorian as he drew his sword. I felt the feedback from the lightsaber trying to cut Beskar iron. I leaped backward, and blocked his swing. I saw an opening, and leaped coming down like an avenging hawk. He went down in a welter of blood. I looked to the top of the hill, where Carth stood just watching. I spun.

Canderous struck Sherruk so hard that his helmet flew to the side, shattered. Sherruk was in his thirties, a man with a feral look. He leaped in again and Canderous snatched him up, almost 200 kilos of man and armor held above his head as if it were a pillow. Then he slammed the man down so hard that he rebounded almost a meter. Sherruk screamed, clawing at his back. His legs didn't move, and his arms were getting weaker.

"Sad is the clan today, little nephew." Canderous said softly.

"Canderous, help, please..."

"As you gave help to Ilse, whom you raped then murdered before her father?" He asked gently. "As you helped those you enslaved? In your death will come redemption." Canderous ripped the datapad from his neck. Then he dropped it, holding out his hand to me. I handed him my lightsaber, and he ignited it and lowered the blade to the _Soochir_.

Sherruk gasped, eyes wide with terror.

"For the clan, nephew." He pushed down, and the metal and plastic melted into a puddle. "Go and maybe in the last day you will be worthy to return." He shut off the lightsaber, set it down, then reached out, snapping Sherruk's neck. He handed it back to me, looking at Carth.

"His dishonor is now mine. I shall expiate it before I die. That is how we deal with his kind."

The Mandalorian I had killed indeed did have a collection of lightsabers. Five of them. I gathered them up, and put them in a pack on one of the bikes. I set these bikes as well to return to the enclave. It was full dark, and while I wanted to continue, Canderous was in a deep depression. We lit a fire on the hill, and sat around it. Carth had found a couple of bottles of wine that he had held out, and he opened them. "Canderous, tell me of your battles."

"Why?" The answer was softer than you might imagine from such a huge man. "So we can fight again?"

"No. Because I think the custom is that you must ask another before you can tell yours." He held out the bottle. " 'And in circle they sat, and drank the wine they had taken from their enemies, and in their stories they drank not only to their own honored dead, but to those they had vanquished as well'. Is that the right quote?"

Canderous leaned up, taking the wine, and swallowed deeply before handing the bottle to me. "Sometimes the planets we faced had defenses. Our fleets were rarely strong enough to pulverize worlds as yours could, so we had to find other means. We were on the outer rim, and a planet named Kadir had a defense that would have shrugged off a regular assault, so a new weapon named the Basilisk war droid was to be tested."

"Big thing? Eight meters wide, three meters thick, looked like a big disk with legs?" Carth asked.

"Yes, you have seen them. What you didn't know though was the AIs of the first production run were stupid. Sometimes they would not orient themselves when entering atmosphere, and burned up. The engineers finally decided that we needed a man literally riding them to get them from orbit to the ground, and I was one of the first to test them in combat. My Phalanx of 50 warriors were deployed at 100 kilometers above the planet, and rode our Basilisks down through the hellfire of the atmosphere burning the ablative armor from their stomachs. Picture being able to reach out and touch the fire of such an event! It was madness, but that didn't stop three of my men from losing hands doing it.

"Well I dropped down right over a planetary defense grid..."


	11. Dantooine: Padawan

Grove

Danika

As the sun rose, we awoke, and continued our journey. The Grove was not that far ahead, and I felt the presence of the darkness that dwelt there. I had felt this before, but hadn't known it was the Force. People call it acting on a hunch, or invisible eyes.

I saw the bodies first. Three or four Mandalorians had come here, and they lay torn to pieces by Kath hounds. But I could see the cuts of a lightsaber. They had died, but their killer had hacked and hacked at them until they were dismembered. I saw the standing stones, and a Cathar woman kneeling in meditation. I walked softly up to the edge of it, and stopped.

She looked up, madness and hatred in her eyes. She reached out with the Force, and both Canderous and Carth were blasted off their feet by her anger. Then she leaped, lightsaber ignited, charging at me. I blocked, pushing her with the Force so she landed ten meters from me. She bounced back to her feet, and charged again, screaming wordlessly.

I found myself desperately blocking her assault, unable to attack even if I had wanted to. She reached out, and I felt phantom fingers close on my throat. I shook them off, and pushed again, harder. She slammed into a stele, and I reached out, snatching the lightsaber from her hands into mine.

"Kill me!" She screamed. "You're the strong one, the strong always kill the weak!"

I shook my head, the lightsabers dying in my hand. "I did not come to kill. I come to cleanse."

"It's the same thing!"

"Who are you?" I asked.

"I am Juhani, and this is the seat of my dark power. This is the place you have invaded." She glared at me. "This is where I embraced the dark side, where I sought solace in my pain. It is mine, and I will not give it up!"

"You embraced the darkness. Why?"

"I was distraught over my home world, destroyed by Malak and his fleet. I was angry, and my master sought to teach me. I used that hate, that anger, I struck my master down. I killed Quarta!" She screamed again in pain. "When I did I knew I could never go back, they would never accept me. Now I revel in my dark power, enough to destroy any that faced me!" Her face fell, her voice softening almost to a whisper. "Or so I thought."

"Power is never enough."

"What do you want of me? Why can't you leave me in my pain?" She wailed.

"What do I want? To talk with you, nothing more."

"Talk! You have beaten me so easily. Yet all you want is talk? You a stranger and a human! All Cathar know that the weak exist only to feed the strong. So be strong! Kill me!"

"To be strong is to be gentle as well." I said softly. "Like a father holds his children in the strength of his arms, yet does no harm. I hold no hatred for you, Juhani. Only peace."

She shook her head. "Even in your naive attitude, you defeat my words. I sit here, thinking myself strong in the Force, but I am a cub bravely attacking her mother's foot! But I have gone too far, I can never go back to what I had been." She looked past me, watching Canderous and Carth struggling to their feet. "I thought my masters, the other apprentices were jealous. They held me back because I would outstrip them so easily otherwise. None of them could match me in full cry! Now I see that it was because I was not good enough. I would never be good enough."

I touched her face. "The first step a child takes on the path to true knowledge is to admit that they don't know everything. Throughout life those that remember that, and are still willing to admit that they still have ignorance are the ones that continue to grow. Denying that ignorance is the first step to death."

She smiled sadly. "If only my ignorance had not been so costly. My master suffered and died from it."

"Even death does not end the essence of the Jedi." I replied. "Death will not hold either of us, sister. If your master has died, the Force will take her back as she takes even the smallest animal in its time."

"If only she were alive still." She mused. "There is so much I still have to say. So many faults I must confess. The masters will consider me a failure."

"Why? Because you made a child's mistake?

"How could they forgive something I cannot?"

"You struck in anger, you ran in fear, and now you let that fester within you as you revel in your dark power. Can you not see that like an infection it must be lanced and cleansed?" I waved at the fields beyond. "You must return. You must show them that anger is like rainwater that has run from your body, and fallen to the ground. Once here, now gone and no more."

"But will they accept me?"

"Show them that what you were, what you became, is no more. Show them your contrition, your willingness to learn from those mistakes."

I felt it; a lightening of the Force about her. She considered my words. I held out my hand, and her lightsaber leaped to her hand. She flicked it on, scowling at the red color. "I must replace the crystal. Better yet," She smashed it on the ground, the metal shearing. "I will start over with unblemished parts." She looked at me, not with hate, or anger, but with wonder. "I will go. I will beg their mercy. I will stand in the light again." She ran past me, and I watched her running with all her heart toward the enclave so far away.

Return

Danika

Our return was uneventful. The Kath hounds still menaced, but those we spoke to said the attacks had dropped off sharply. We crossed the bridge, and Canderous pushed to the fore. The man that mourned Ilse saw us coming, and stopped, unsure what to do.

The huge Mandalorian knelt, looking down. "I report that those that dishonored your daughter are dead by our hands, and that their leader died by my own hand. However there is shame upon my clan thanks to their leader. He was of my clan, so my clan bears the dishonor." He took off his own _Soochir_. "This is the honor of my life, the honor of my name. If you feel I deserve it, smash it destroy it or merely keep it from me. Until you return this to me, My clan and I have no honor in the eyes of our people"

The settler took it, staring at the hulking form bent before him, then at me. "The Mandalorians that have been raiding here are dead. Canderous Ordo of Clan Ordo fought well to kill them, to take the vengeance on Sherruk Zion of Clan Ordo with his own hands. Canderous destroyed Sherruk's _Soochir_, leaving him an empty voice among his people. Yet he feels he owes you and your daughter more." I lit my lightsaber. "If you feel that he and all Mandalorians bear this sin, set it down, and I will destroy it. He will become nothing to his people, as Sherruk now is. Just keeping it wounds his honor, but it is a wound he offers freely in recompense."

The man stared at it, warring within his heart. Part of him wanted to smash that plastic and metal form, to deny even this man his honor. Then he sighed, tears running down his face. He held the chain, dangling the _Soochir _before Canderous. "Take it. My daughter will sleep well now."

Silently, Canderous took the _Soochir_, slipped it back over his neck, and walked toward the Academy entrance.

We entered, and I saw Juhani standing in the courtyard beside Belaya. Belaya ran toward me, then stopped. "I must thank you for returning my friend, apprentice. She was lost to us, but has returned, thanks to you."

I was nonplussed. "I did what had to be done for her and myself. I am glad she walks in the light again and that I helped her."

Juhani approached, hesitant. "I must give you my thanks, and beg your forgiveness. Thanks to your advice I am welcome here, but I caused you pain in the process."

"No matter." I said. "What have you heard of Quarta?"

"It was all for nothing. If I had stayed, if I had bothered to check her, I would have found that while sorely wounded, she still lived. As if a child in the Force could hurt one such as her!

"That bout was supposed to be merely more training in the Force. The Cathar are hunters and killers by nature. We have pride in the skills we carry from our animal ancestors. Such skill however, along with pride could drive us into the Dark side if used as it can be. She wanted to show me how easily pride could lead to the dark side, and picked the wrong time to do it. But I ruined it all!"

"Her treatment of you was harsh, but you cannot fault the test, Juhani."

"The ways of a master are strange to those that have not ascended that height. Looking back I can see the wisdom of her actions. Humility is something my people have trouble learning, and is never easy even with other calmer races. But I am a better Jedi for it. Now I know what I must be on guard from in my own soul."

"Sensible." Canderous commented. "The hard lessons can't merely be handed to you as if they were instructions to a small child. As my people say, 'Pain is the teacher, and reflex is the result'."

"Your people speak wisely some times,." Juhani agreed. But her voice was harsh. She turned back to me, ignoring Canderous. "After that fight Quarta decided that there was no more she could teach me. She knew I would need time alone to explore and master the turmoil in my spirit. Only then would I be willing to listen to a guide and return. You were my guide, and I thank you for it.

"Quarta went to another Academy, there is always work for a teacher such as her. With her help and yours, I have passed this test. The Council now decides what training I need to complete my studies before I can be declared Padawan and go on into service."

"Some friends." Carth snorted. "First the Jedi trick you into becoming the enemy, then they pit you against each other. Then, since you survived, they welcome you back. Can't say I like what how they run this training."

I turned, and as I did, Canderous spoke. "Giving you a second chance when you have failed this badly is a sign of weakness. I find it hard to believe that the Jedi could face even a Republic threat, let alone people such as mine in battle."

"Canderous, As you said, I say to you both; Your words issue from an empty head. We at our training are still children in the Force. We need guidance until we understand how little we know. And as for you, Carth, from someone who trusts no one, I will take your comments as I do with your mistrust, because I must." I turned my back on him. "Trust in the Force, Juhani."

"And in those that help. Thank you."

"The masters knew you would return, they asked me to inform you that they will see you in the morning." Belaya reported.

"Then I am going to take a hot bath and go to bed." I looked at the two men, smiling. "If you two would like to share more stories, let me know. It was an interesting evening."

I was coming up the ramp when I was almost slammed off my feet by a guided missile named Mission. She clung to me, crying, and I wasn't sure what was wrong.

"I'm sorry, I was mad at you when you left, and I thought you'd die!" She wailed.

"I didn't die, Mission. Don't worry."

"But you asked me about Griff and I was mean to you, and you didn't talk to me for _weeks _and I wasn't sure how to apologize, then you were gone, and no one would tell me where you went except into the outer lands, and-"

"Mission." I hugged her. "If you don't mind scrubbing my back, I will tell you what happened."

After I had cleaned up, and gotten a bowl of food, Mission sat with me. "It's just; I don't like to talk about Griff that much. It's embarrassing."

"I understand, you don't need to tell me anything."

"No, I owe that to you for what you've done for me. Zaalbar is a great listener, but it took a long time to learn his language, and he's more of the beat on a problem and it goes away type.

"I never knew my parents. They died when I was young. Griff always looked out for me. He was the one that brought me to Taris. I was only five then, and I remember the trip, if you want to call it that. We were stuffed in a packing crate in a star freighter's cargo hold, with just enough food and water to make the trip. It wasn't first class."

I was aghast. "How could he treat a five-year-old like that?"

"I don't know the whole story. He probably owed people money, or maybe there were arrest warrants out on him. He was pretty good at getting into computer systems, and when we had to run, he programmed us as cargo, and had us delivered. Once we got to Taris, he broke open the seals, and we headed into the Lowercity. That was the only way he could see to get us away from the problems, to smuggle us out I mean. I don't want to make it sound like we were criminals or something, though maybe Griff was.

"Now you see why I don't like to talk about it. Griff may have had his problems, but he was my brother, and took care of me."

"He's family. You have to stick by your family."

"Right! I don't know where I'd be if he hadn't been there when I was a kid. But he didn't change. He gambled, he drank, and he was always borrowing money for his latest get rich scheme. But he had a good heart. He taught me how to survive. He taught me how to slice a computer system, how to get into a locked building without the access codes, how to spot a quick mark for a shell game."

I was surprised she hadn't ended up in a penal colony. "Useful skills to have."

"Yeah, Griff did right by me. I really miss him since he left. He promised he'd come back for me, and I've just been waiting for him to come and get me."

I ran my finger around the rim of the mug, unsure where to go with this inquiry. "Why did he leave?"

"He fell in with a bad crowd, Exchange types, high rollers. It was all Lena's fault. She batted those lashes of hers, rubbed her Lekku in just the right way-" She ran a hand down the tentacles on her head, and off he went!"

"Who's Lena?"

She clutched her mug. "I said I'd tell it all, and I will! She was a dancer at the cantina Griff hung out at." I nodded. Twi-lek women dance in what is considered a seductive manner. Part of it is that to the women of their race dance is an expression of freedom, a religious experience, and a mating ritual all at the same time. Men of a number of races feel the attraction, and the Twi-lek women use that primal attraction when they are dancing for work.

"We had a good thing going. Sure Griff had run ins with the law, but all you had to do on Taris was be born anything but human for that.

"Griff used to play Pazaak at the club. Then Lena came there to work. Griff liked her, and when he wanted to be he was a smooth talker. Pretty soon they were spending a lot of time together. But the crowd Lena hung out in was upper class. She would escort top rank Tarisian men when they came slumming, if you know what I mean. Exchange hard guys, rich men all of them. Griff could never have given her the lifestyle she enjoyed. "

"So you expected Lena to dump him."

"Yeah. But she must have seen the potential of a big pay-off. Big enough to put up with him."

"Maybe she really liked Griff. He does sound personable."

"No way. I could tell exactly what she was. A busty, no-good credit-grubbing Cantina rat! She used Griff just like every man around her. After they had been together for a few months, Griff told me they were leaving Taris. He had a plan and they were going to make their fortune off world. But Lena didn't want a kid interfering with what they had to do, so she told him to leave me there until afterward. But he promised to come back and get me. We'd live like Taris nobles with the best of everything!' Her face fell. "That was two years ago. I haven't heard anything, I don't even know what planet he went to!"

"And you think this is Lena's fault?"

"Of course it is! She stayed with him until they made that fortune, then she dumped him somewhere and ran off with it. I only hope I can catch her and find out what happened to Griff. I may never see him again, but I'm not going to stop trying." She sat up straight. "That's why I joined up with you, and wanted to go off world. I can't start my search from a pit on Taris."

"I'm glad you did."

"I just wish there was something to do. The Jedi Academy is like major creepy, and I hear about Kath hounds and crazed Mandalorians, and I don't even want to think about going into the outlands."

"Well what can you do?"

"If a computer had legs, I could get it to sit up and beg."

"Well we seem to have acquired a ship, and we're not going anywhere too quickly as far as I know. How about working on an inventory for Carth? I hereby declare you to be the ship's supercargo!"

"The what?"

"When you load a ship, everything has to be just right, the mass has to be balanced, you have to know where everything is, how much of it you have and when you need to buy more. The supercargo is the loadmaster and purser combined; the one that makes sure that is done, and makes sure it's paid for."

"I'm on it!" I handed her a datapad, and she went to work on the inventory. I curled up in my bed, and went to sleep.

The next morning I poured my tea and joined Carth and Mission at the table. Mission was humming to herself, and seemed focused. Then she handed the pad to me. "How did I do?"

I looked at the pad. She had gone through the entire load out of the ship, and had prepared a full inventory. There was a list of equipment we needed, and supplies such as food beyond combat rations and even additional spices and cooking gear.

"When did you have time to do this?"

"All night." She said. "I figured the faster it was done the better."

"Carth, what do you think?" I handed it to him. He looked at it, and the fork paused on the way to his mouth. "Better than any depot officer I ever saw. Pretty good, Danika."

"I didn't do it. Our supercargo did."

"Who?" I pointed at Mission. "No way!"

"Carth, she needs something to do, and I like her style. If I have to, I'll call for a vote, but I don't think you really want to take it that far."

"But she'll be handling all of the money! What's to stop her from walking with it?"

"Hey mister antique high and mighty jet-jockey, I got more money than you know what to do with!"

"Oh you do, and where did you get it?" He glared at her

She looked at me, her defiance vanishing. "Promise you won't get mad?" I shrugged. "When we got here from Taris, I didn't have anything to do, so I decided to check the local central computer records."

"You sliced into a protected system?" He stared. "From my ship?"

"Your ship! Ha you wish! No, I used a terminal in the shop over there." She waved toward the shops along the docking ring. "Just to check out the system, and used a few credits to buy access to the main data banks.

"Since Davik was dead, I used his access code, at least anyone seeing it would think it was his code. If they check, they'll also think he used a computer in the main city. I withdrew every account he had that was off Taris and sent it all to Coruscant."

"Coruscant? Why there?" I asked.

"Because he was supposed to send his commission to the Exchange there. When it arrived, the computer bootstrapped it to an outgoing signal, and it went through five other systems at random before going back to Coruscant, then into a numbered account with the Bothan banking cartel. I have the number." She looked sheepish. "But I had to pay Danika back, so I bought her something."

I suddenly knew where this was going. "Oh no, you didn't-"

"No I didn't. Davik did according to the paperwork. He sold the _Ebon Hawk _to you on arrival here, bought passage on a ship leaving for Naboo, and never boarded. As far as anyone knows, Davik has gone off to parts unknown with a lot of money that belonged to the Exchange. But considering a lot of the stuff he's done and how old he was, I could see him running off to retire somewhere with

a fist-full of credits."

I stared at Carth, who was vainly trying to not laugh. "You aren't helping, Carth!'

"I can't think of a better group to get ripped off for a few thousand credits!"

"Hey, I don't work cheap! Try a few _hundred _thousand credits."

"Oh dear." I said. I hoped she was as good as she thought she was. The Exchange would blow a planet apart to get that much money back. And the Bothans are more _serious_ about money than that! "Now Mission, as much as people think it is all right to steal from thieves, you shouldn't have done that. I want you to promise you won't slice into any computer from this point on-"

"-Unless we ask you to." Carth put in.

I glared at him, "Unless we really need you to."

"That's a promise. If I find Griff, I'll have the fortune he was looking for already waiting." She looked smugly satisfied. She handed me another datapad. I took it warily. It recorded a bill of sale for the J-Class mod 4 _Ebon Hawk _to me Paid in a banking draft from a numbered account on Bothawui. All fees, taxes etc had been paid. "the account that paid for the ship is mine, and the money went through Davik's hands into the same mangle as all of the other money. All it cost me was the transfer fees and taxes. That was wicked though, the Republic government bureaucrats are worse thieves than any I ever met!"

I knew the Bothans were secretive and so honest it was a byword within the Republic. Money is important to them, more important than anything but a contract. To them a contract is something stronger than durasteel. Maybe the Republic could break their banking system, but no one else could. I looked at Carth desperately, but he was studiously ignoring me. "All right, I give up!"

"About time." Mission said. Now I have to get on the com with the supply center. We need the rest of our supplies as of yesterday."

Padawan

Danika

I entered the training center. Master Zhar was talking with several students, directing them in meditation. He looked up at my entrance, turning his class over to an older apprentice.

"The Council has seen your report, and I must say, well done my pupil. The ancient grove has been purified, and your handling of Juhani's case deserves praise. Few would have looked beyond the surface to see the root of the problem. Because of your vision, she has been returned to us.

"But you cannot dismiss what happened to her. Juhani was as dedicated as any before her fall. Remember that we are all vulnerable to our own weaknesses. She injured her master, a grave act. Quarta admitted to us that she chose to test Juhani in that manner, and provoked the attack in so doing. Yet, thanks to you, it seems to have made its point, and the lesson was learned.

"Congratulations, my apprentice, or should I say Padawan. Let me be the first to welcome you to our order." He took my hand warmly. "There is much you must do, and little time to do it. The Council will meet in two hours, and your assignment will be given then. Until then you are free to do what you will."

I bowed and left. Part of me wanted to return to the Ebon Hawk, to immerse myself in the friends that had come so far with me. But instead I found myself in the archives. The tables were crowded with apprentices and Padawans studying with deep concentration. Master Dorak saw me, and walked toward me. Of all the Jedi masters I had met he was the only one that hurried anywhere. He was so full of energy that merely walking looked like a military stride.

"Congratulations on you ascension Padawan. What do you seek today?"

"Revan and Malak bother me." I admitted. "All I have heard of them suggests that of all of us they should have been the least likely of the order to fall, yet they seem to have fallen so easily. Is there a record of them here in the archives?"

He frowned. "Yes there is, but it is in the one place where I can decide who must hear it." He tapped his head. "I have recorded it on a Holocron, but I think you should hear it directly." He led me to his office, assigned two of his Padawan assistants to assure no one disturbed us, and sat me down with a mug of tea.

"The story does not begin with them, because events prior to it led to their fall. I will begin forty years ago, with the war of Exar Kun. Like Revan and Malak, Exar Kun was a Jedi. In fact he was in consideration as a Jedi master at this very Academy. Yet his master Vodo-Siosk Baas felt that there was too much impatience in him." He looked at me. "As one who has fought, and one who has learned, you understand the danger of such with a student."

"Yes. You can't just hand a squad to a someone without the proper mindset and expect them to excel. Either they get her men killed, or gets killed trying something stupid."

"Indeed. He left the Academy, and created another one on the moons of Yavin 4. He drew a lot of our disaffected to him at that time, including those among the Sith, and fell to the darkness after a voyage to Korriban.

"Eventually, the Jedi Council called him to task. He had demanded autonomy for his planet, and the matter was to be discussed before the Republic Senate. But when Exar Kun arrived, he cut down his master before them, and told the Republic Senate that no one could tell him what to do, and that led to the war.

"The Sith of course joined that war, as did a lot of the planets that wanted to break away from the Republic. If they had simply declared their independence, the war might not have even occurred. The Senate tends to take a rather scattered view of what to do in such a case, and the Chancellor can suggest or ask, but never demand action from them. But Exar Kun's forces began to try to expand out of their enclave, and that forced the issue.

"The war devastated us all. Yavin's fourth moon was bombarded and reduced to ruin, the Massassi race was obliterated when Exar Kun drew all of their life force in a frantic bid to protect the moon. The Order was weakened, most of our order had died either in the fighting, or in the defections that had occurred. The Republic had spent a massive fortune to win, and was weakened both politically and militarily by the concessions they had to make to the Corporate organizations and Trade alliances. For twenty years, we struggled to rebuild from that carnage.

"But we were not left in peace to do so. Twenty years ago, the Mandalorians began conquering planets and multi system polities on the outer rim. They were circumspect, careful to not attack systems that were claimed by the Republic, or allied to us.

"The Senate debated heatedly, then finally decided to do nothing. They saw the fact that if we were to intervene, other nations would join the Mandalorians, and we could not afford such a major war so soon after the last. We would stand neutral."

"But we were drawn into the war anyway." I murmured.

"Yes. While we stood by and did nothing, the Mandalorians threw every industry in those captured worlds into production of supplies and ships. Seven years ago, they attacked across the border into three separate sectors simultaneously. The Senate had no choice but to order the fleet to battle. The Mandalorian wars had begun."

"How did the Jedi stand on this?"

"We were petitioned for aid." Dorak admitted. "But there were factors to consider that the Senate could not understand. We had to resolve them before we allowed ourselves to be drawn into another such conflict. Unlike the Republic, we cannot simply throw money at an Academy and crank out Padawan like proton warheads or warships. Training takes most of a young person's life; money, or shouting does not change that.

"As Master Vrook said, we are guardians of the Republic, and sadly that led to our major problems with the conflict. While we tried to preach restraint and patience to those of our order, there were many of our members that not only wanted to join the fight, but were eager for it. This extended right up into the Council itself. The controversy focused around two young Knights who had emerged as spokespersons for the group. Revan and Malak. They rallied many to their cause and finally, against the wishes of the Council, joined the Republic fleet in battle a little over five years ago.

"For the Republic, it could not have come at a better time. Revan was a skilled warrior, a master of Naval warfare, both strategy and tactics. She took the fleet in hand, and the Republic began to not only win, but win handily. Four years ago, she was able to smash their fleet so decisively that the Mandalorians surrendered unconditionally."

"Yet at the height of her victory, she fell."

"Yes. Revan and Malak her strong right arm were heroes, the saviors of the Republic. A third of the entire fleet was under their direct command at the end of the war. But something happened.

"They returned here only briefly, then took that fleet beyond the border of the Republic into unexplored space. They claimed they were searching for a Mandalorian fleet that had run rather than surrender. All contact was lost. For months it was believed that some great disaster had destroyed the entire fleet. There were reports, all unsubstantiated that Revan and Malak had been seen on worlds within the Republic, and beyond, even to Korriban. Scattered sighting that made no sense, and still do not."

"There was no idea of where they had been or why?"

"None. Perhaps they merely went beyond our borders. Maybe they had discovered previously undiscovered Hyper corridors. No one on our side of this conflict knows. But three years ago they returned with a massive fleet larger than she had left with. Revan claimed to be not conquering the Republic, but to be liberating it, returning it to what it should have been. She had also assumed the title of Darth, the dark lord of the Sith. Our greatest hero had become our worst enemy.

"But you said they had only a third of the Republic fleet! That is what, a thousand ships all told. Where did they suddenly find such a force?"

"Some were our own ships now in her service. But over half of them were of an alien design never seen before. By every estimate made, there is no known way for her to have built such a fleet in so short a time. The only suggestion that makes sense is that they were derelicts that she had discovered and converted to her service. But they exist, and the fleet grows with even more ships of that design joining them every day.

"As for the troops, most were those that she had led into battle. You know as well as I that soldiers believe in order and discipline. It is what makes their function possible. While the population of the Republic might abhor it, her call to make that order something everyone would have drew a lot of the military to her. With each conquest her ranks swelled. Even many of our own order also joined. The ones that see us as ineffective at maintaining order. All lured by the glory and the power and some for the riches such power would naturally create.

"So we fought them, and we could see what the Mandalorians already knew. That no one could stand against Revan when she set her mind to a goal. Malak was not considered as much a danger. He was nowhere even close to being her equal in these matters, and had attained his rank by being her obedient servant still."

"So we fought them."

"Yes. But we needed the sheer will of those that saw her idea of 'order' as oppression to do so. For two years they were all but invincible. Fortunately, Bastila proved to be a master of battle meditation. That allowed us some victories. But we could not maintain the pace of the conflict.

"Our efforts focused on Revan and Malak. It was believed that if we could remove Malak, Revan would be weakened. Not a great deal mind you, but any lessening of her efficiency would be good. But if we could remove Revan, the Sith would no longer have her skills to fall back on, and the war would sputter out. So we set a trap for them both. A fictitious supply base was created in a system accessible from just one hyperspace corridor. Revan fell for this."

"Zanebra."

"Yes. She led a fleet there, and when they arrived, they were dragged from hyperspace by gravity well projectors that also trapped her in normal space.

_ Forty-five of ours versus forty of theirs. _I remembered. Against anyone else it would have been a slaughter. Instead it had been a Pyrric victory.

"Bastila was one of the Knights that led the desperate assault aboard the enemy flagship, as you should know. She was there to witness Revan's end. Not at our hands, but when Malak aboard _Leviathan _blasted the ship apart.

"That was three months ago, but if anything the situation has grown worse. Malak assumed the title of Dark Lord, and while he is far from Revan's equal, he has made up for it with sheer brutality. Worlds that would have resisted have been terrified into surrender by the news of Taris' fate, and when that has not been sufficient, he has repeated it, killing more worlds for daring to resist too efficiently. There is no longer talk of order and peace, now the Sith simply say surrender or be destroyed.

"By removing Revan we have merely released an even worse horror on ourselves. We must end this before the devastation sends us into a spiral downward from which we can never recover. Malak and the Sith will overwhelm us and destroy any vestige of freedom in the process." He looked at me sadly. "Learn from this, young Padawan. Even the most promising among us can fall, and the greater that promise, the greater the danger they become. You must always be on guard against the evil all of us harbor within us." He looked at the chrono on the wall. Come, the Council awaits us."

As we walked I asked. "Revan was wearing some kind of mask in my vision.

Why?"

Dorak contemplated the question. "When Revan was younger, many discounted her abilities because of her looks. She was, after all, not unattractive However she never told anyone why she had begun to wear it."

Ascension

The Council awaited me as they always had, united. Bastila looked at me, and for a moment I noticed unease in her face. Master Vrook, looking a little less angry than was his wont nodded at my entry, and took my hand. "I must congratulate you on your actions. The heads of both Matale and Sanderal came to complain, but now are asking us to intercede with their children. The fact that they have done so knowing that the other has also done it bodes well for the disagreements between them.

"The handling of the Mandalorian problem was even more efficient than we might have imagined. The fact that the Mandalorian who is your follower showed the true spirit of his people has done a great deal for relations between the locals and the few Mandalorians that visits us peacefully. Yet what gives us the greatest hope is how you dealt with Juhani. She has repeated your words to us, and we can see the change in her mien. You have done a great service not only to her but the order itself."

I winced under all of this praise. I had done what was necessary, and had considered the options.

"You have chosen to be a Consular, in this we approve." Vandar said. "However we now must cut short your training young Padawan. Events beyond this world force our hand, and we do not like the implications of it, but there is no time. We must now focus on the dream both you and Bastila shared.

"When we heard of the ruins in your dream, Master Dorak recognized it as one not far from here. A series of such structures are scattered around the lands of Dantooine. We dispatched a Jedi to examine those ruins, but he has not returned. We fear that we erred in sending him.

"The Force seems to be guiding you through your visions. We believe that you and Bastila can succeed where he has failed. The task of exploring that structure seems to be linked to your destiny. That is why the Council has decided to send you both on this mission. Whatever led Revan and Malak down the dark path must be there. The secret that will lead to stopping Malak may rest within it, and we must have that!"

"Master, I have been given a précis of the situation before, but I need to understand our adversary. What do you know of Revan and Malak?"

He froze, and I was afraid I had offended him. Then Vandar relaxed. "I knew Revan as a promising young Padawan of this very Academy. She was strong in the Force, and highly skilled, but she was headstrong and proud of her skills; but such traits are common among Padawan. Perhaps that is why I did not see the true extent of the danger.

"Many of our apprentices admired her not only for that skill but also for her natural charm. She was always outgoing, and willing to help others. Among her admirers was Malak, four years her senior, but she had mastered the ways of the Force more readily than he had. Yet she never looked down upon him. Rather they were good friends and were inseparable. When Revan decided to join the Republic war effort, Malak was the first to join his voice to hers in the matter.

"However that bond was what dragged Malak down when Revan fell. Others also fell at that time, but everyone knew Malak would, as assuredly as gravity draws a meteorite to it's death by his devotion to his friend. It was inevitable."

_That bond_. The words resounded in my mind for some reason. _Like the one that Bastila and I share? Would I be dragged under if Bastila fell? Or she by my fall?_ "So you're saying that if Revan had not fallen, Malak would not have?" I asked softly.

"Such will never be known. Revan was as I have said, always the more powerful of the two. It had been hoped that if Revan were removed, the Sith war effort would become fragmented, and fade. But Malak has embraced the dark side even more deeply than his master had. Only you and Bastila have a chance of stopping him now.

"The way ahead of you will be difficult for both of you. But you must draw strength from each other and the Force." He looked at the others. "You must go and quickly."

Bastila

As much as I had know what was to occur, I dreaded it. Danika motioned, and we went out toward the ship. "I want to understand this dream we shared."

"As the Council has said, it was more of a vision rather than a dream. However if I can answer any questions they have not, I will help as I can."

"It isn't the dream or vision that obsesses me, Bastila." She was a little frustrated. "It is why you shared it with me, or I with you."

"Are you wondering why we shared it? Or why it was sent to us in the first place? As to the first, I can only repeat what the Council has already said. The Force links us in this. For someone as strong in the Force as either one of us is, that amounts to a near physical bond. As to the second, the Force works as it will, and our likes and dislikes have little to do with it. Perhaps we should only be grateful for what we have been given."

"But why us?" She asked adamantly. "How did our fates, the fates of two women from such different lives come to be so interwoven?"

I considered what to say. I knew whence it had come, but I couldn't tell her. "I am not sure. Believe me I don't find the thought and reality of being linked to you as enjoyable in any fashion."

She stopped, looking at me appraisingly. "I just find this link to be a little too... convenient."

"The Force has always proven that it can bend the laws of physics and probability in ways we cannot even imagine before they occur. It is especially true of those deeply affiliated with it. In this case, when the Force had forged such a bond, we must merely accept it, no matter how 'convenient' we find it. We Jedi are tools of the Force as much as we use it."

"You make the Force sound alive. As if it has a mind of it's own."

"There is no evidence either way on the matter. What you make of the Force and how you use it and it uses you is determined by what kind of person you are. Does that help?"

She shook her head. "Not in the least. Maybe I should just trust in the Force."

I sighed inwardly. "As must we all."

We came out into the docking bay as a cargo lifter came in. Mission came out, striding as if she were an officer from a major cruise line. She began checking the invoice, and signed when satisfied. She signaled, and droids began moving the material aboard.

"Just about the last is aboard, skipper!" She shouted gaily.

"Mission, is that you?" The girl paled, and her teeth were bared in a killing smile.

We turned. A Twi-lek woman stood there. She had all the physical attributes Mission would one day possess, and the help of several years in knowing what she could do with that sensual armament. She looked overjoyed to see Mission; something Mission didn't share. The woman looked confused. "Don't you remember me, Mission? It's Lena."

"What are you doing here? Where's Griff?"

Lena's face grew sad. "I'm just passing through on my way to Ryloth. We broke up not long after we left Taris, Mission. Probably for the best for me. Your brother talks a good game, but he's bad news."

"Don't you start trashing my brother you cantina rat! Take that back or I'll rip your Lekku off!"

"Mission, what's wrong? What have I done-"

"You talked him into leaving me when you went off world!" Mission screamed.

"She is upset that she was left behind." Danika commented.

"I can understand that. Anywhere would have been better than Taris! That's why I was surprised when Griff told me she wanted to stay."

"You liar! Griff said you didn't want his little sister cramping your style!"

Lena's face grew cold. "Is that what the little Hutt-slime told you? Mission, I wanted to take you with me. You had become the little sister I never had. I would have paid, just like I paid for everything he asked for. He said you wanted to strike out on your own."

"No, you're lying, Griff loved me, he wouldn't have left me."

Danika was watching both of them and I could feel her mind reaching out to discover the truth.

Lena's voice grew warmer, her hand raised in a placatory manner. "Mission, think about it. If I had tried to leave you why didn't Griff tell you where we were going? I couldn't have very well stopped him, could I? After we left I knew something was wrong, because he started talking about how you were always tagging along, and stopping him from doing what needed to be done. I think you might have noticed, but Griff is very good at blaming others for his problems. He did the same thing to me before long, blaming me for his gambling losses, the get rich quick schemes that cost more than we ever saw back out of them. Finally he told me to get out of his life and stop draining away his luck."

Mission stood there, staring in hate and dismay at Lena, then she bolted onto the ship. Lena started to follow then stopped, almost crying. "He did that to everyone. I thought he might have at least treated her better."

"Where was he the last time you saw him, Lena?" Danika asked.

"He'd hired on with Czerka Corporation on Tatooine. They are renting mining claims and he figured on making his fortune there."

"We'll find him for Mission." She promised.

Lena looked at her. "Take care of her, will you? Griff treated both of us like dirt. I don't want to even think about what's going through her head right now."

We went aboard. Danika went to the starboard berthing area, and I followed. Mission was curled up on her bunk, crying.

"Mission."

"She's lying, he wanted me to go."

"She told us where he was, Mission. Tatooine, working as a miner."

"All right, he's a miner, but the rest is all lies!" Her voice told me however that she was desperately denying what she must have known was the truth.

Danika touched her shoulder gently. "We will find the truth together, Mission, and I will be there. Now, want to get off the ship?"

"Yes!" She rolled over, wiping her tears away. "Where? The city, maybe?"

"No. Some old dusty ruins. But you would be a big help to me if you went along."

"Well ruins aren't what I like. No fancy lights and hot drinks."

"Afterward maybe." I looked, but I couldn't tell whether she was joking, but her mind radiated amusement.

"Sure. Should I be armed?"

"I am."

"All right then." She slipped on her weapons belt, and slipped the heavy blaster pistol into it.


	12. Dantooine: Forelorn Hope

Ruins

Danika

We left the enclave at a mile-eating jog. For someone who had been a city girl, Mission stayed with us pretty well. Of course running away from the Black Vulkars had probably gotten her ready for this. We avoided the Kath-hound packs, moving with smooth speed across the plains until finally we reached the series of standing stones. I stopped, looking around. I felt Bastila's apprehension, and could feel my own as I felt the Dark side like a tangible web before us. She moved up beside me, her lightsaber in her hand. "I don't think we'll need that just yet." I said. She glared at me, but hung it back on her belt.

The door was huge, molded stone with patterns disturbing to the human eye. I reached out, and felt the door slide aside as if it had expected me. We entered the gloom. Cunning light channels focused sunlight into the room, and I could see the next door. Like the first it was huge, but unlike the first, this one bore a burn from an energy blast. I remembered Revan in the dream, using the Force to force the lock. I touched the lock tentatively, hoping I would not have to do the same, but the lock stone settled in it's niche, and the door slid downward into the ground.

Dust lay like a blanket over everything. I stepped in, and stopped as Mission yelped. There to our side, a Jedi lay, his hands curled before his face as if warding off an attacker. Bastila came over to him, kneeling. "Nemo. He is one of the oldest Padawan here. Never good enough to be a master, but always willing." She stood, eyes toward a metal pintel standing in the center of the room. As we watched, legs sprouted from its dull sides, lifting the mass of a droid body from the floor. It began speaking in an odd language.

"Danika?"

"I haven't heard anything like it before." I replied. The droid stopped then began speaking yet another language. "I think I might have heard that somewhere but can't remember." The droid cycled to another language. Then another when we didn't reply. "That's Selkathi isn't it?"

"It must be an ancient form of it." Bastila said. "I don't recognize the language."

"Do you understand this?" It repeated in ancient Selkathi.

"Yes, I do." Danika replied.

"Language synchronization complete." The droid said.

"Synchronization?" Danika asked.

"Yes. This unit has been programmed with all of the slave languages of the Builders. It is required for my duties as overseer."

"You understand that?" Mission asked.

"Yes, it's speaking an archaic form of Selkath." Danika replied "Overseer of what?"

"The construction of the temples on this world. The slaves that might be sent come from throughout the Hegemony, and all of their languages are programmed into this unit. However you did not speak a language that was in my memory core. An oversight easily corrected during my next maintenance cycle."

"Who built you?"

The Builders built me. When they completed this structure, the slaves that worked on it were euthanized. I was shut down. Since you have arrived, I must assume that more work is required."

I filled Bastila in "Maybe the Selkath built it?" Bastila asked.

"Unlikely. It thought we were slaves. It wouldn't have spoke to us with their language." She turned back. Overseer, how long have you been here?"

"Since the beginning."

"No help there." I said. "How long has it been since you were deactivated?"

It hummed. "From the positions of the planets, and the stars, I must assume the outer planet has made eleven orbits of this star."

Again I told Bastila. "Eleven orbits? The outer planet orbits the sun every 2500 years! This structure is older than the Republic itself!"

I looked back at the Overseer. "What was housed here?

"The works of the Builders. No slave needs to know more than that."

"Have other slaves come seeking this?"

"No."

I paused. "Others did come seeking it."

"Yes."

"How long ago?"

"Five planetary years."

"Revan and Malak." Bastila hissed.

"What happened to them?"

"They proved worthy of the Builder's knowledge, and departed."

I looked at Nemo. "Did you kill this man?"

"This unit has neither the ability nor the programming to kill. Only to punish. The being you speak of attempted to bypass the security system and was dealt with."

"How can I prove myself worthy?"

"There are proving grounds to the east and west. By passing them successfully, you may enter the main chamber. Failure will result in your death."

I drew my lightsaber, and walked toward the west door.

"Danika. Is this wise?"

"No, I admitted. "However we must get into the main chamber, and we don't have time to waste." I pressed the lock, and the door opened. A droid stood there in my path. Beyond it was what looked like a computer terminal. I stepped forward, then leaped back hastily as the droid hummed to life, a force screen blinking up. I stood there, but it ignored me. I wasn't past the threshold yet. "Mission?"

"Yeah?"

"How good did you say you are with a computer?"

"If it were a man it would marry me when I'm done!"

"Come here, but stay back from the door." She walked over, standing behind me. "Never see anything like it. But it's got a keyboard, and places to put diagnostic tools. What's the problem?"

I lifted a piece of stone, and flipped it toward the other end of the room. The droid turned smoothly, and a beam shattered the rock.

"Well I have to get over there, and key in. What about the door guard?"

I sighed, closing my eyes, and focusing myself. "Just hurry." Then I leaped in, running past the droid. My lightsaber blocked a shot, and I was past. It hummed angrily, and began charging after me. I ran to the wall, ran two steps up it, and spun, my saber cutting down onto it. But the force field bounced the lightsaber back hard enough to jar my hands. I flipped over it, and began running frantically around the room. There were pillars and stones that had fallen from the ceiling, and they saved my life as I ducked and dodged among them.

"Almost there-"

"Hurry!" I flipped up a stone, flinging it at the droid. It caught the stone with a leg, then folded it over and through the rock contemptuously as if it were moldy bread. The humming was rising as if I had really made it mad, and it lunged, wrapping legs around a pillar. The pillar staggered, and I dived aside as it collapsed. I ducked behind another, and it suffered the same fate. The droid was removing my cover, and I was rapidly running out of places to hide.

"Got it!" She ran past me, and I flicked up the lightsaber, stopping a bolt from taking her in the back. Frantically I backed away. As I passed the threshold it paused, growling as if it were on a leash.

"Maybe the other will be easier?" Mission asked. I opened the door, and she yelped at the droid standing there. They must have been in communication because this one was already mad. I leaped over it, and my dance began again. I knew a lightsaber was an outstanding weapon, but at the moment I wanted a heavy auto-cannon and about a kilometer of standoff. I started to use the pillars again, but this one started smashing them immediately. I was left with no cover within a minute. Mission was engrossed in her work, and I had to protect her. I looked up, noticing a pillar cap that hung a bit down. I reached out with the Force, feeling the stone sheer, and three tons of stone dropped on the droid like a hammer. I had barely taken a breath in relief when it pushed it's way up like a mole, and the red sensor ports locked on me.

"Mission-"

"I got it!" The droid finished climbing out of the debris between the door and us.

Nothing happened. It stood there, the humming slowly fading down, then the lights went off. I gasped in relief, and we made out way past it.

The Overseer stood there, watching. I went to the door. This one had writing of some kind on it. "Overseer, what does this say?"

"Room of the Star Forge." It said.

"What is the Star Forge?"

It grumbled electronically. "That is not in my memory banks. It was not considered necessary to my function."

I told Bastila. "Then we don't even know what the Star Forge is." She mused. "Beyond the fact that it appears to be an artifact of great power for the Dark side."

We stood before the door, and opened it. Like the first, this one had light channels that focused all of the light on a dais. I walked up to it, and there was a handprint set in stone there. The hand had four fingers, and I instinctively put my hand in it, keeping my middle two fingers together.

There was a clicking sound, and the stone sank in a short distance. As it did, I saw a flash of light. What appeared to be an ornate tricorn pillar split, each horn falling back to form a large arch. Between them smaller triangular legs lifted then a ball in the center of the mass shot into the air. Light fired into it, and we flinched from the light as it glowed into a hologram. The galaxy seen as a disk, and on it, five stars glimmered. Lettering marked each star with a long list of coordinates.

Bastila was our star pilot, and she was in her element. She recorded the entire map, then settled down on her haunches. "All right, I am not sure where the rest are, but that one-" She tapped the map. "Should be Korriban if I am correct. The Original settlements of the Jedi that joined the Sith were there. This I think is Manaan, and that would mean this is Tatooine. This over here could be Kashyyyk. I have to take this back to the archives to compare it with the master charts. To be sure of which stars they are. This set of coordinates in each line-" she pointed at one "-is a lead to another hyper corridor. The coordinates are odd, missing data, corrupted programming. I need more data."

"The Star Forge." I almost heard an echo. The book had mentioned it, and so had the Overseer. "What could it be?"

"Whatever it is, Revan and Malak found it first. We must discover the truth about it. But if Revan and Malak thought someone might follow, there will be traps.

"Why would they have gone to Korriban?"

"That is actually the only verified place where Revan and Malak had been during their disappearance. These other worlds will undoubtedly give us clues to where the Star Forge is. Once we know, we can find it, and discover a weakness. It seems our task has only begun."

Mission stood there watching us. "Guys, if it's all right with you..."

"Yes Mission?"

"If you decide I need to take a walk or something, could you forget to tell me? That was a little intense."

I stifled a laugh. Even Bastila smiled. "Well I don't think your worried about Griff at the moment." Mission giggled.

It was a long walk back, and I felt a chill at thinking that I was now on Revan's path. She had come here, seeking in her own mind, the Republic's survival. It had instead led to the bloody war we were fighting. I glanced at Bastila. She was lost in thought, a small frown on her face.

"What's on your mind?" I asked.

She looked at me. "I was considering what the Council said about us. There is a bond. We both feel it. But the nature of the bond is what I question."

"I still don't understand the bond itself." I admitted.

"Our fates have become intermingled somehow. So strongly linked that a literal bond has formed between us. Given our continuing relationship, I would like to ask some questions. Nothing too intrusive." I shrugged. We had to walk a good distance yet, anything would help pass the time.

She took my silence for assent. "What is your background?"

"Nothing extravagant. I was raised by a professional hunter, joined up, did six months of combat before we met. Just a soldier really."

"Where you born?"

"Crossroads hospital on Deralia. It's a frontier planet. Unless you hunt you probably can't even pick it out on a star chart."

"Your current age?"

"I'm 26, no, I think I turned 27 in there somewhere. All of this is in my service record, didn't you look at it?"

"Actually yes, I did. I knew the answers, I merely wanted to see how you handled the questioning."

"All right. Now, madam, how did I do?"

"You answered honestly without flippancy, and took the questions as seriously as they were put to you. A lot can be told from such an exercise. Your reactions, and mine will shape what happens within this bond. I had to know what type of woman I was linked to."

"Fair enough. Now, turnabout is fair play. Tell me about yourself. Tell me how you became a Jedi."

She walked in silence. "I am 19 years old. I was found to be strong in the force when I was five, and I was given to the order to be trained."

The way she said it disturbed me. "Given? It sounds almost as if you were a pet."

"Nothing of the sort." She said stiffly. I could hear the lie in her words. "When I joined the order, I left my family on Talravin as all of us do. My family is still there, last I heard. I have had little contact with them as such is discouraged."

"Discouraged?"

"Of course!" She looked at me surprised. "I forget you didn't study here as a child. Emotion is our worst enemy, because it leads a Jedi into error." She said as if quoting from a book. "Families have such emotions, and they are more powerful when you know the person that intimately. Hatred and anger are dangerous true, but even love can cause danger to the Jedi."

"You aren't even allowed to love?"

"Oh it isn't forbidden, merely discouraged. People speak of how love is blind, but at times it can be deaf and dumb as well. Think of the power an unrequited love could generate in your soul." She paced on, thoughtful. "Emotional entanglements can be dangerous when the lover is a Jedi. They can lead to outbursts of emotion and impair rational thought. A Jedi must be above such things."

"You don't sound very convinced."

"It is a hard lesson to learn. I wasn't on good terms with all of my family, but I remember missing my father terribly for a long time."

"Who were you not on good terms with?"

"I was only a girl when I left, but I didn't like my mother. I resented how she treated my father. My father was a treasure hunter. I spent my first years traveling from one planet to the next, searching from one false lead to the next. She whittled away my father's fortune on one failure after another, and I hated her manipulative ways. I know it was her decision to send me off to be trained. My father was heartbroken."

"You've never tried to get in touch with him since then?"

She shrugged. Her shoulders stiff. "A child doesn't understand why sacrifices need to be made. It was better for all that I not try once I had come into my power. Once I was older I realized the wisdom of the policy. A Jedi might be sent anywhere, into any circumstance. When they arrive they must do what is needed to resolve the crisis, and personal desires cannot be part of such a decision. Love or hate can only obscure the proper course."

"You sound sad about that."

She laughed a bitter laugh. "Even the Jedi cannot control the feelings of the heart. We must always guard against it, but that doesn't mean it doesn't exist. Some have a harder time of it than others.

"I really would rather not talk about this anymore."

The Quest

We arrived at the Enclave, and filed our report. As we went back toward the ship, a woman stopped us. "I am looking for Bastila Shan." She said, looking at each of us.

"I am she." Bastila replied.

The woman looked at Bastila, as if trying to see another face. "Yes, you have grown, but I see your father's eyes. I am Malare Velos. I knew your father well."

"Knew?" Bastila's tone was sharp, as if she expected bad news.

"Yes. He and Helena left and went on to another planet not long afterward. I hope you're mother's condition has improved." She said bluntly.

I thought Bastila would react, but she didn't. "Her condition?"

"You mother contacted me because I was coming to Dantooine. She wanted me to ask you to meet her, and I hoped the Enclave could at least pass on a message."

"Then you have. "Where is she?"

"Still on Tatooine, last I heard."

"If my business takes me there, I will see her."

"Bastila, there is no need to be abrupt." I admonished.

She looked at me, and I knew she wanted to scream at me. Then she turned back to Malare, and her voice became warmer. "I am sorry for my abrupt behavior. Pressing matters guide my footsteps at this time. Please forgive me."

Malare nodded, but I could tell she had been deeply hurt by Bastila's reaction. She walked away.

We returned to the ship, and Bastila went into the berthing area, and stayed there all night.

Bastila

My mother wanted to talk to me. But what of Father? I felt as if someone had taken a hammer to the universe and shattered its foundations. I remembered him as if it were yesterday, a giant hoisting me up to his shoulders, showing me the world from the heights. Tousling my hair, and laughing. Holding the shards of pottery I would find at some of the sites we visited in search of that golden future. He always acted as if what I found would be the key to that future, even though in my child's heart I had known it wasn't true.

And my mother, watching from the shadows, lurking like a pit spider to drag him away. My fists clenched, and I wanted to hurt her, to smash that face into ruin, to make her feel half the pain I had felt when she sent me away.

That night I dreamed, and as always, Danika was there. She was silent, walking beside me through the forests of Deralia. She tried to take my hand, to hold me as she had done so many times, but I pushed her away. I didn't want comforting. I wanted vengeance.

At one point, I ran, feeling the rough bark of the trees as I stumbled through the forest. I came to a temple mount, steps cut into the living rock, and found myself climbing them. At the top, my mother stood, with a knife raised, then it came down on an unseen figure. Her hand reached down. She looked at me, sneering, then flung something at me. I caught a bloody heart, then recognized my father on the altar, his chest ripped open.

"He wanted you to have this." She said, her tone dripping with vitriol. I ran toward him screaming, and hands caught me. Danika. She showed the same skill she had shown with others, holding me firmly and crooning wordlessly to calm me down.

The next morning I avoided Danika's looks. I wanted out of the bond, but I couldn't see a way.

The Council met in the same room as always. Master Vandar looked at Danika. "Your report was clear, Padawan. Revan and Malak sought this star map, which leads to something called the Star Forge. Master Dorak has searched the archive thoroughly and except for the two mentions that seem almost like legends, there is nothing about it."

"I don't know Malak's intent, but I feel that Revan sought something to protect the Republic rather than destroy it." She said.

"What brought you to this conclusion?" Vrook asked sharply.

"Master, she was still trying to protect the Republic from an outside threat, maybe even a future one. I think she went looking for this shield for the Republic, but the dark forces that surround it brought her down."

Vrook nodded thoughtfully. "It sounds like her. She was always one to play with fire. This time she got burned."

"You knew her, Master?"

He looked at her sharply. "Every master in this room knew her."

"Master Vrook, let us concentrate on the matter at hand." Vandar chided gently. "The news that the Star Forge may actually exist and with no knowledge of the extent of its powers is... disturbing. Action is called for but we must not act in haste. We must discuss this at length. Please return to your ship."

We returned to the ship, and I returned to the starboard berthing area where the women were sleeping. Mission saw me and scuttled out. My look that day before probably frightened her still. I sat, and tried to meditate.

"Bastila?" Danika. Who else would try to break through my funk?

"Go away."

"I will not." I looked up, and she came over, falling into the tailor seat facing me. "You can't keep it in, Bastila. Your hatred for your mother is coming through clear enough to make me angry with the woman. And your fighting against the bond is not helping."

"I will deal with it-"

"No you won't" She interrupted harshly. "You will allow it to fester, and build within your soul until you discover the truth. You want to know where your father is, and you want a confrontation with your mother. You see him as a sacrifice to your mother's demands."

I pictured the altar scene again. "Stay out of my mind!"

She laughed softly. "As if I can. I don't like the bond, but it is there, and I can feel all of your pain through it. Your pain is mine, Bastila." She looked at me thoughtfully. "After Kalendra left, I was devastated. I wanted to run away, go to Echana, beg her to bond with me. It wasn't until later that I discovered that the Echani are all empathic. They link in the life-bond on a level the normal human cannot imagine. This bond between us is like that, if I am not mistaken.

"That bond can only be broken from within by the mutual agreement of the partners, or by death. I don't know if this Force bond is like that, and I am afraid to try to break it.

"Please, Bastila, if not for your sake, than for me, your bond-mate, let's find your mother, let's get it over with one way or another. I can't stand seeing you in pain, and having your pain transfer to me doesn't make it any easier."

"Just go away. Please." I begged.

She reached out, brushing a stray hair from my face delicately. "As if I am ever far away." She stood, and left me in my misery.

Our wait was not long. Again the Council met with us. "Padawan Danika, you have done well, but there is more that you must do against Malak and the Sith." Vandar said.

"I am ready, Master." She said humbly. I could feel her emotions just as she would feel mine, and I could see only a deep calm and resolution in them. How could she be so calm?

"We of the Council see no way that mere martial might will defeat the Sith. Not as long as they have this Star Forge on their side."

"Yet we are agreed that the only way to remove the threat is to find and if possible destroy this Star Forge." Vrook said. "Whatever it might be, it must be a powerful implement of the dark side to have dragged both Revan and Malak down."

Vandar spoke. "The map you found showed four worlds, and Bastila was correct in her assessment of which worlds they were. Tatooine, Kashyyyk, Manaan and Korriban. We believe that whomever built the Star Forge wanted it to be difficult if not impossible to find. These other worlds perhaps have maps of the same type as the one you discovered, and they might give us clues to the Star Forge's location. You must go to each world, find the star maps there, and discover the location of the Star Forge."

"As the Council wills, Master."

"The council knows how important this mission is, but we are bound by constraints in this. If we sent a company of knights upon this quest, with masters to guide them, we would draw unwanted attention. By the same token our ranks have been so harrowed by the Sith that we have no massive company to spare. Secrecy is needed."

"Must I go alone, Master?" Her question was not plaintive, but I could feel the worry in her mind.

Vandar shook his head. "That would be equally unwise. A young barely trained Padawan would have no chance if such as Revan and Malak could fall so easily. Bastila will accompany you. The bond between you might be the key to unraveling this mystery. And Juhani has asked us to allow her to accompany you. After long deliberation, we have acquiesced. You have been a stabilizing influence in her life, and perhaps she can help to stabilize you as well. She came so close to falling to the dark side. Perhaps her example where you can see it will strengthen your will in this regard."

I was watching the scene with horror. I wanted to scream, and beg them not to send me.

"There are also the ones that the Force has gathered to your cause. They must be asked, but I know that their special qualities will make this mission easier for you as well. But they must be told that secrecy and discretion must be paramount. You will not be able to conceal the fact that you are Jedi, nor should you try. But word of what you seek must not reach Malak's ears."

"I understand. When do we leave?"

Vrook sighed. "As soon as you feel ready. Malak grows stronger every day, and we must have that information. But a word, young Padawan. The lure of the dark side is strong, and you must guard against it at every turn. If not I fear the quest to find the Star Forge will lead you down an all too familiar path."

"The fate of the Galaxy is in your hands, young Padawan. We pray you are up to that challenge. Go, and may the Force be with you."

She bowed. "Go, Danika." I said. "There is something I must discuss with the Council. I will meet you in the courtyard." She nodded, and left. I faced the council. I reached within myself, and with every fiber of my being brought myself to calm, forcing it to also extend down the link we shared. "Masters, I have made a grave error."

"Such is the lot of Padawan from time immemorial." Vandar said dryly.

"The link I forged. It is going beyond any ever recorded. I can feel her emotions, her desires, and sometimes even her thoughts. I don't know if I can stand it much longer."

"When you told us of it, we were also worried."

"But now it has become impossible! When she was just some woman, and we thought it would fade or just be interesting dreams for the both of us it was one thing. But she has found the Force within her, and her progress at gaining its mastery terrifies me! She is so much stronger than I! The bond will drag me down when Danika falls!"

"You believe she will fall?" Vrook asked.

"No, I don't. She has shown a depth of control I have felt from no one, even from my original master. But that control fights with her own emotions. She was furious when she discovered Zaalbar had been a slave, when she faced the Mandalorian raiders here on Dantooine. Yet she took those emotions, placed them away from her mind, and dealt with the problems she faced."

"So you worry for yourself, not her."

"Yes! No. I don't know!" I looked at them appealing. "I recently heard my mother was ill and looking for me, and for a time I was unable to deal with it. I dreamed, and she was there! When I tried to meditate after our last meeting, she was there, trying to deal with my problems as if they were hers! I can't stand this! Please, there must be some way to dissolve the link!"

"She has already suggested a possible way to you." Vandar said softly. "Ask her to aid you in breaking it."

"No." I shook my head vehemently. "We might need the link as it is to succeed."

"If the link is necessary, what would you suggest?" Zhar asked.

"Don't send me."

"That we cannot do. You have caused her mind to be calmer than it was before. If you are separated, the link might drag you to join her anyway. Or consider if she does fall." Vrook said. "Can you see yourself committing the acts the link will force on you here among us?"

"There must be something!"

"There is not." Vandar said. "If we could break this link, we would have done so when we discovered her new found talents. You will not accept the alternative, and we cannot allow her to roam the galaxy like a sentient warhead alone. Can you see an alternative I have not mentioned?"

I shook my head. "I will do what must be done." I bowed and took my leave of them.

Danika was seated on a bench, looking at the Blba tree. "You have something you wanted to ask me." She said at my approach.

"I do. How did you know?"

She grinned sadly, tapping the side of her head. "You didn't want me to hear what was happening, yet some of it came through. Is the bond so horrible? Or is it me you hate?"

"I am a Jedi. I will not let emotions guide my actions. I do strain against the bond, true. But I neither hate nor like you."

"Well that is clear enough."

"The bond allows us to catch glimpses of each other's mind. Our emotions travel along it and what you feel troubles me. A Padawan must receive considerable training. She must learn to control her emotions and darker impulses before she can be trusted to act within the world beyond the walls. This takes time, years in some cases, before control is assured.

"The problem is that the Republic does not have the years needed to assure you will not fall. You are strong in the Force, and that very strength drives the situation. You desperately need those years. Your lack of training can doom us."

She stood. She wasn't trying to block the bond from her end, and I felt worry more than anything else. It was like looking into a calm lake and seeing the fin of a predator cutting the smooth surface. "What can I do?"

I shrugged. "Considering our situation, there is nothing that can be done from outside. You have shown a remarkable degree of self-control and compassion up to this point. I hope you can maintain it when the surroundings are not so controlled.

"We must all resist the forces of the darkness that resides in us all. It is what we give our lives to stop. You with your natural affinity to the Force are pressed harder than those with more training."

She nodded. "I can only try."

"That is good to hear. You will find the path harder even with the best of intentions. There is great danger before us. Any reckless act by either of us will affect the other, and the consequences can be devastating."

"But it works both ways." She said. "As I tried to help you earlier today, you can lend your strength to me."

"Yes, that is true. I will do my best to guide you, but I am no master skilled in such arts. Not yet at least. There are times when I find your very capability frightening. As if I were riding a beast the size of the _Ebon Hawk_. Your sheer strength within the force can be overwhelming.

"I only hope that my skills can guide you through the hard times ahead."

"I hope so as well." She said softly. "While I was waiting, I asked one of the Archivists to gather all the information of the planets we must visit. I wanted to study them while enroute."

A Twi-lek hurried toward us. Like most of those that worked with Dorak, he seemed permanently bemused, but when focused was like a missile. "Greetings, Bastila, I am Deesra, Master Dorak's assistant chief archivist. The files you request, Padawan are here." He handed the data chips to her.

"Five chips? I asked only for the planets."

"Ah but your request for Korriban also kicked this back." He said. The record of the last Great Hunt."

"Great Hunt?"

"The Sith are not the only minions of the dark that exist. There are animals that find themselves drawn to it as well. The worst of these abominations is called the terentatek, a beast that feeds on the flesh and blood of those who have any vestige of capability of the Force within them. The stronger the being is in the Force, the greater the impulse, so their preferred diet is Jedi, and our dark cousins. Over the centuries, many Jedi have fallen to their ravenous appetites."

"How great is the danger?"

"For a Jedi, it is ever present. We are their chosen prey, and they are intelligent and vicious hunters. They also have an inborn resistance to the powers we wield. It is believed that they are a horrible hybrid created by the True Sith of long ago, and spread through the galaxy in their attempt to destroy the Jedi.

"Fortunately, they are quite rare. They only live in places steeped in the dark side. In fact no one has seen one in almost forty years."

"Possibly they are extinct."

"There is no such luck. They have disappeared for centuries at a time. It is believed that when the light side is strong, they hibernate in some manner. When the Dark side waxes stronger, they awaken, and as the dark powers grow, they are drawn our of their lairs to hunt. I fear Malak and the Sith have reawakened them to hunt again.

"When we have defeated the Sith, I would not be surprised if the Council does not organize another great hunt as they did then."

"You mentioned the Great Hunt before."

"After the previous incursions of the Sith, such hunts were organized. Jedi must again travel and try to set right all that had been destroyed by the Sith. When our members die suddenly by violence, and with no other possible reason, the terentatek are usually responsible. Teams of Jedi are sent, and they hunt them down and kill them. Though always the cost is high."

"The cost." She mused. "Because you are hunting something that hunts you back." I looked at her, and she shook her head. "Remember, Deralia is home? A place where Hunters go to face the most intelligent prey in the galaxy. A lot of Jedi probably died in that last hunt."

"Yes they did. Korriban is rumored to still have them in abundance. That is where the New Sith first settled. It is where they always seem to return after one of their defeats. It is also where Exar Kun fell, and became the Sith Lord. The planet was still strong after the war of Exar Kun, and the Council viewed the cost of capturing it merely to destroy these animals as prohibitive. They declared the hunt at an end, though three Jedi were sent to deal with the problem if they could. But they failed. Duron Qel-Droma, Guun Han Sharesh and Shaela Nur had a bond in the force as strong as you two share.

"It was believed that their bond would strengthen them in the ordeal. But their Master reported that they had rejoined the force only a short time later. It was decided that it was too dangerous to send others, so their exact fate is not known. But let their deaths serve as a warning to you."

"I will." Danika slipped the chips into her pouch.

"Do not underestimate the terentatek, Padawan. Great Jedi have fallen to them before. If you go into battle with them you must use all your skill and cunning to survive!"

War Council

Danika

Back aboard the _Ebon Hawk_, I called a war council. Everyone was there, and I assured that they were comfortable before I began. I let Bastila give the briefing, and sat back watching them. When she was done, Bastila waved toward me. I stood.

"Remember what you said about confused chains of command, Carth?" I asked. "This is guaranteed to be a real problem if we don't take care of it before we lift. This is what I propose. Carth, aboard ship, you are in command." I waved down Bastila's protest. "You are the most experienced pilot we have, and Bastila is the second best. That makes you our flight team. Canderous, you have more experience with weapons than any aboard, so you will be the weapons officer. You and I will man the guns. Mission, you already have a job, and from what I've seen, you're good at it, so you remain our loadmaster. Zaalbar, from what I've seen you are an excellent mechanic, so I'm making you engineering officer. Juhani," I turned to look at the Cathar woman. "Until we find out what other skills you have, I'm not sure what you can do."

"I am a skilled healer. I will accept medical officer."

"Done. T3, you'll help where possible. Did I forget anyone?"

"Yes, you did." Bastila said. "You haven't told us what you will be doing."

"Why I am the Captain and owner aboard, master of all I survey." I said. There were chuckles. "In truth I was assigned this mission with Bastila assisting. So I am just going from place to place with you.

"Our destinations have been logged into the Nav-computer. I am open to suggestions as to where to go first."

"Well we had better leave Manaan for later." Mission said. "Davik is wanted in Ahto City. But then again, taking a crime boss' ship does have its advantages." She grinned. "There are four entire transponder settings. Who shall we be today? _Coruscant Sunrise_? _Freetrader Alliance_?"

"Isn't that illegal?" I asked, matching her grin.

"Hey, I won't tell anyone if you don't." She stopped smiling. "I know my brother's on Tatooine, but I won't let personal problems enter into this. I will go where the ship goes."

"As do I. Juhani said. "I am just glad that someone who trusts me is in command."

"I go where I'm told to go, and kill who I'm supposed to kill." Canderous said.

Zaalbar growled. It didn't matter to him. T3 bleeped the same.

"Carth?"

"Before we go anywhere, I want some answers. I guess I'm just sick and tired of being kept out of the loop."

"I haven't been keeping you out of the loop, Carth."

"Maybe not, but you're not helping matters, and it's really beginning to irritate me. For one thing all the secrecy. The Jedi Council drags the two of you in to talk, but won't even tell me what it was about.

"Then all that training while we were forced to sit on our butts. Yet instead of finishing that training, they send you out like a sacrificial goat! Even I know it takes years, even decades before a Jedi is judged competent, but you've had what, seven weeks?"

"They though it was more important that I help find the star maps instead of staying."

"And why is this your mission, not hers?" He waved at Bastila. "Sure you were hell on wheels on Taris, in a free flowing combat situation. But this is different. What good are you going to be commanding a mission when you're not even qualified to be a Jedi yet? What about your training?"

I looked at Bastila. "I was sent because Bastila and I share a bond, and that bond is giving us clues of where to search. It gave us the coordinates so far, and the planets to search on."

"A bond? Just because you like Echani clothes, and use a ritual brand like one doesn't make you Echani! I find the entire reason they've given us to be shallow. You're a neophyte Padawan, saddled with what might be the most important mission of the war. Why? If this were a Republic crew and ship, and you had this little experience I would say it you were a stalking horse! This is a suicide mission in everything but name, and I for one want to know why I have to die!

"I'm not accusing you of anything, or saying that you are responsible for the Jedi Council, but throw us a bone here! There has to be a reason."

"Bastila has a bond with me, and I have been given this assignment. There is nothing more I can say, Carth."

"And what does that mean? Is this more of that 'destiny' crap the Jedi are always shoveling? That can't be it, and someone, either the Council, the Jedi themselves, Bastila, or you is hiding what is going on. I am not going to be betrayed again!"

I sighed, closing my eyes. "Carth, I am not Saul, and I am not going to betray you. I thought I had earned at least some trust."

"It isn't that. I don't think..." He slammed his fist on the table, and looked at me sadly. "All I seem to do is insult you. Let's just get on with this."

I looked around, then nodded. "Stations."

I walked forward, followed by Carth and Bastila. I went to the Nav-computer, and opened it's files. One entry intrigued me. "Why is Yavin listed?"

"Must have been something Davik left."

"Why does that name..." I snapped my fingers. "Exar Kun's base at the end of the last Sith war. "Why would that be in here?"

"Perhaps they are using it as a smuggler's hideout, or transfer point?" Bastila opined.

"I am wondering about the salvage options." I said. "With the Massassi extinct, and no patrols, perhaps they are looking for artifacts they can sell to the Sith?"

She considered. "That is possible."

"Then let's go there first." I punched in the coordinates as Carth lifted us off. I looked down on Dantooine, and felt a chill. Somehow, I knew I would not be returning.

_Subtle and insubstantial, the expert leaves no trace; divinely mysterious, he is inaudible. Thus he is the master of his enemy's fate_


	13. Ebon Hawk: Sasha

_Ebon Hawk:_

Enroute to Yavin

Danika

We lifted off, racing into space. I felt the ship lurch as we jumped to hyper speed, and felt myself relax. We were on our way. Bastila came in from the cockpit, and I looked at her. "What's wrong now?"

"I wanted to speak with you about our mission, and what lies behind it. It seems the Force is pushing us into a confrontation with the Dark Lord himself. I wanted you to realize the dangers and prepare yourself. The confrontation with Malak will be difficult for you. I remember how hard it was for me when I faced Revan."

"I saw her die in your vision. Did you have to kill her?"

"We used my battle meditation to board the ship, but it was not our mission to kill her. Our mission was to capture her if it was at all possible. It was Malak that fired upon his own master's ship. He hoped to kill both his master and us."

"So Malak completed the mission for you."

"As I said we did not come to kill her. "The Jedi do not believe in execution. No one deserves to die for their crimes. Remember that both Revan and Malak were once heroes to the Republic and the Jedi. Their fall highlights the weakness in all of us."

"I will face him because I must. If kill him I must, I will. I will not gloat or glory in it."

"I know that. I have been studying you and you have grown even farther than I might have imagined just in the last few days. I have seen you resist the dark side in your memories, and continue to walk the light path. But I worry that all of your progress merely means you will fall because of a misstep. You must fully understand what the dark side represents, for it is the reason we Jedi exist. We confront it and fight it at every turn. The worst of that is when it is within us." She shook her head. "Only a Jedi master can explain this fully, but I will try."

"Please, guide me."

"Using anger or the temptation is not the whole of the dark side. These are just easy things to point at for students. Using the expedient path rather than the slower more careful path can also lead there. You spoke of Revan looking for a way to protect the Republic. That would be expedient for someone that feels war will always be with us. But at what point does expedient become wrong? You were a soldier. Didn't you see men thrown into a battle untried because a commander didn't want to wait for better-trained troops?"

"More often that I want to think about it."

"Accepting punitive losses in a battle is expedient if you win. Allowing a planet to be devastated so your forces can be elsewhere on a mission you judge as important. The list goes on. That can lead to the dark side as surely as anger, and Revan was known for it.

"The dark side is like a person that wants you to love them. It can cajole, and entice, and like an attractive man can lead you on. It can be impossible to resist. Once you have stopped resisting, you realize that there is no going back, no way to step back across that line into the light again. It twists you up inside, makes expediency the only course to follow. Like a spice addict you have to continue, even as you know you are killing yourself."

"You sound like you've been through this."

"I have not, but I have skirted the edges of it. Everyone has their pet peeves that get through their shell to poke at them. Their temptations to do rather than observe. My mother is one such for me, as you know.

"But for those that have given themselves wholly to it, it is worse. Look at what is happening even now! Billions dead on Taris because of Malak's fury that he had not caught me. Shattered fleets, economies ruined by fighting between us. What sort of person must you become to do things not only willingly, but gladly?"

I pictured Malak, visualized the order being given. "I can't see myself ever doing such a thing."

"That is why the dark side is so insidious. Do you think Revan woke up one morning and said to herself, 'I'm bored. Let's conquer the Republic!'? The Sith have become stronger with Revan and Malak joining them, and those of our order that have given in because of their admiration of her have swelled their ranks. Before Revan's fall she would have seen it as poetic justice. After all, what greater weapon is there than to turn you enemy to your cause? To use their own knowledge against them?

"As our strength goes to them, our resolve begins to weaken. As if the two sides were both using battle mediation simultaneously. But they are the stronger now. We must harden our hearts, do whatever we must to end this conflict. Even when the very idea of battle makes us more weary."

_But that is simple expedience. _I wanted to say. "What must I do?"

"I don't know." She looked tired. "Our path is clouded and unclear. But I sense ominous shadows in that future." She shook her head. "I think I have probably given you enough to chew on. I am going to meditate."

Hyperspace travel is like nothing in the Galaxy. You are in a bubble of life, racing through a medium where nothing is known to survive. Your ship rumbles and vibrates with power as you hurtle faster than light. It is like sledding down a hill, but with a blindfold on. Only a Nav-computer guides you, and you have to put your faith it.

Of course I had been through this before, but something didn't feel right. It was like an itch in the center of my back I couldn't reach.

All of the Jedi aboard had taken to using the portside cargo bay as our practice area. Canderous spent his time in the starboard cargo bay there on his weapons and exercising constantly. After Mission had optimized our storage to compensate for the weight, we had a lot of free room, and remotes could maneuver without danger as we fought them. As I moved through the training Katas, I could feel someone watching, but there was no one there.

We had fallen into our duties aboard easily. One of the duties no one had considered was commissary officer and cook. After a disastrous attempt by me to make something, everyone had been irate. But Zaalbar had stepped into the breach, and had proven to be a surprisingly good cook. His skill extended beyond the simple cooking of his people, and I would have judged him excellent. The only problem we had with him was his sensitive nose. When Canderous had asked him to make Merdai stew, Zaalbar had refused. The dish was incredibly spicy, and of all aboard, only Canderous and I would eat it. Zaalbar had stayed away as Canderous made it. I had looked just yesterday for what remained of the stew he had made, and it had disappeared. Canderous had denied eating it, and Zaalbar had denied throwing it into the recycling chute.

Just before we dropped out of Hyper at Yavin, Zaalbar approached me.

"The ration containers have been broken into." He reported.

I took the wrapper he held out. It was the standard emergency rations we kept aboard. For the life of me, I couldn't see anyone eating it if they could avoid them. Unlike combat rations, where at least you know the race that is eating them, you couldn't guarantee who might have to live on E-rats. They had to sustain any of a hundred life forms with varying needs in minerals, and since it had to be edible for all, they had turned out to be palatable to no one.

"Are you sure?" I asked.

"If there's anyone who knows how much food we have aboard, its Big Z." Mission quipped.

"Just the emergency rations?'

"No." He said. "Fresh fruit, raw Zabu meat and Canthis bird. Some of Mission's candy-"

"Hey, that's serious!" She said.

I bit back a laugh. "I will take a look." I said.

The food was stored in sealed containers. I found the opened one that had held the emergency rations after a search. The crate had been almost emptied to make enough room for a small person to scrunch in without too much difficulty. It was at the back and top of a storage bay, and had been resealed clumsily, but well enough to avoid a routine look. I climbed down, then went to the storage lockers on the opposite side of the bay. Davik had a gourmand's appetite, and we had a wide selection. The lockers were equipped so that they were temperature and humidity controlled. Frozen foods chilled foods like meat and vegetables that would be cooked, dry goods, and spices. I checked each locker, looking at the inventory sheets as I did. We were missing a container of Pipalli, a spice closer to rocket fuel than food the Mandalorian used in their stews. About two pounds of raw Zabu and the same of Canthis bird. While edible raw, they were much better cooked.

In the vegetable bins I found that of the ten kilos of halo fruit we had brought aboard, we only had four left. However I checked the log, and after going through the fruit I discovered that about a kilo was missing that had not been accounted for. The Donkin Pears had been harrowed as well. Of fifty kilos of them only 20 remained according to the manifest, but there were two kilos of them missing as well. It wasn't vermin. The food had been neatly rearranged so that a casual inspection would reveal nothing.

I turned, and then systematically searched the bay. The only sign of an interloper was a neatly stacked pile of E-ration wrappers and the wrappers off Mission's candy hidden in a corner. All of them had been meticulous flattened, and stacked as if they expected to be graded for neatness.

That told me that our stowaway had been aboard for more than a week. But we had only left Dantooine four days earlier. So someone had slipped aboard. How I had yet to discover. Whoever it was had left the Hypnar bird, which needed to be cooked, yet taken meats that were readily edible without cooking.

I left the bay deep in thought. I was bothered more by the fact that whoever it was, they had slipped aboard, didn't register on the biosensors that are standard for ships that might land at alien planets, and had done so without any of the Jedi aboard noticing. We had Zaalbar's nose, we had Canderous with more experience in war and ambush than the rest of us combined. We had three Jedi, one of them scion of a race that hunted to live! Yet they were still unnoticed.

I walked toward the port side berthing area, where the men slept, and paused. I had felt rather than heard the stealthy movement of someone moving back the way I came. I snapped my fingers as if I had just thought of something, turned and walked past the storage bay and round into the other one. Canderous was in the middle of his normal physical exercise regimen, doing push-ups on his knuckles. He looked up at my approach, though that didn't affect his metonymic rhythm. I turned, and headed back, moving back into the central mess hall.

"Better not even think about going to Alderaan." Mission grumped. "Davik is wanted there under every alias we have with a 'shoot 'em dead on sight' notation."

"Then we had best not go there." I agreed. I walked toward the cockpit, and stopped I felt that subtle movement after I had passed. This time I felt amusement. Not my own, but from my prey. I turned, drawing a confused look from Juhani as I went aft again.

I suddenly understood how they were moving unseen at least. The compartments and passageways had ducting and crawl spaces both above and below for ease of repair. Someone Canderous' size or Zaalbar's would have had trouble moving in them, but any of the women aboard could have easily. Whoever this was, they had to be smaller than even Mission. I heard a noise rather than sensing it. A giggle. Whoever it was had detected my interest, and had been playing tag with me!

I returned to the cargo bay, and opened the cooler where the fruit was. I selected two halo fruit, and closed the locker again. I sat down, holding one fruit in my hand the other placed before me on the deck.

I love halo fruit. The tart juice makes me glad to be alive. I moaned as if this were the most sensuous thing I had ever done in my life, as if all I loved in the world had been condensed into that fruit. I nibbled, I played with it, I listened as I did. Someone was there to my right, where a vent led into the air ducts. I didn't look toward them, merely leaned back into the lockers, and ate.

The vent grate slipped open, two small grubby hands holding it to set aside gently. I could see the head. Filthy matted blonde hair hanging over a small face. As it came farther into view, I could see that it was a little girl, perhaps eight years old. I turned my head slightly, picking up the other fruit. She froze.

I motioned for her to come out, and slowly she did. I moved my hand as if to lob the fruit to her and she put out her hands ready to catch it. I tossed it gently, and she caught it, watching me, warily still close to the duct. Hunger outweighed her caution a little, and she bit into it with a moan of delight that mimicked mine.

"You were hungry weren't you?" I asked. She looked up, but there wasn't any glimmer of understanding. She watched me, eating. "What are you doing here?"

She chewed, then grunted. "_As ma shooka_." She said.

"Do you have a name?" She was watching me, and I touched my chest. "Danika."

"Daneeka." She repeated. I repeated myself, then reached out as if to say, 'and you are'? "_Me tal amkris_ Sasha." She said, touching her own.

"Sasha?" She nodded. Except for the name it sounded something like Mandalorian. "Well Sasha, you need a more filling meal." I signaled her to stay there, and went to the galley. Zaalbar was making stew, and I asked for a couple of bowls. He shrugged, ladling them out, setting thick slices of crusty bread on top of them for me. I walked back to the cargo hold. Sasha had disappeared, but when I set down the bowls in front of me and resumed my seat, she warily re-emerged. She looked at them, mewling with hunger.

Then one of the bowls shivered, and it started to rise, but fell back, the bread falling to the deck. I looked at her, and she was concentrating, trying to move it from across the room. I clicked my tongue, and she stopped, staring at me.

I lifted my hand, visualizing the bowl and it's contents. I picked up the bread with the Force, flipping it back atop the bowl, then lifted it smoothly. It hovered half a meter off the floor. I heard her gasp of delight, and I slid it through the air to land a meter in front of her. She moved forward slowly as if she thought she might be netted, then picked up the bowl. The bread disappeared into her mouth, and she watched me as she ate. I picked up mine, and began to eat slowly, savoring the taste. She tasted the stew, made a face, then pulled the missing jar of Pipalli out, sprinkling it on the stew.

"Well we know where that went now." I said.

She suddenly stiffened. I looked toward the door. Bastila stood there, looking at me, then at our little stowaway. "I think she needs a bath."

"So do I. But we aren't that far along yet."

"Who is she?"

"I don't know yet. All I have gotten is a smattering of a Mandalorian dialect I don't know, and Sasha as her name." I looked at the girl, who was watching us both, still stuffing her face. "What is it, Bastila?"

"We've dropped into normal space, and we're headed toward an old Republic storage satellite orbiting Yavin 4."

I nodded, watching the girl. "Let me know when we're going to dock."

"What about her?"

"Until we know more, nothing but feeding her and letting her get used to us. We don't even know where she boarded the ship. It could have been Taris, or Dantooine."

"How could she-" Bastila shook her head. "Of course, we loaded supplies, and most of them were brought aboard by droids."

Sasha was watching us. She had finished the stew, and was running her fingers around the bowl to catch any errant morsels remaining. Then she set it down with the spoon standing out of it. I looked at her, then held out my hand expectantly. "Watch this." The bowl quivered, and lifted. Her control wasn't good yet. It looked like a drunken invisible man was carrying it to me. Then it dropped, and I caught it. "Good, Sasha." I said. "Bastila, we need a pillow and a blanket."

"Can't we just move her into the berthing area?"

"Have you ever dealt with a feral animal you want to make a pet?" I asked. She shook her head. "First you feed it, but you always allow it room to escape. You put out food for it so that it learns that food is there to be had. Let it decide when it wants to get closer. After a time, it will move closer because you haven't done anything to frighten it. Soon it eats close enough to touch. Not long after that, it lets you pet it. Eventually it takes the food from your hand. But if you rush, you frighten it and if it doesn't just run away and never come back, you have to start regaining it's trust all over again."

She shrugged, then left, returning with the items I had requested. I set them down on the floor, and left.

The satellite had been a hold over from the war of Exar Kun. When the Republic had invested the planet, they had moved a dozen of them into orbit, and used them to support the fleet that had devastated the planet. I even understood why it was still there. Afterward, it would have been too much trouble to blow it up, and too expensive to remove it. Everyone had wanted to get home and get on with their lives. There are worlds that still live off the supply dumps that were emplaced on their worlds during that war.

But the security systems were still active. Our transponder code was stripped out, and we received permission to dock.

The ship settled into the docking bay, and the ramp dropped after checking the atmosphere. Bastila looked at me oddly as they shut down. Nominally I was in charge, but Bastila had a veto. She declined to use it at this moment. Our scanner had read a single fusion plant running, enough to maintain life support and orbital integrity, but not much else.

"Bastila, could you contact Dantooine and see if we can find out who our

stowaway is?"

"Of course."

I decided to take Juhani and Mission with me. Mission because as our official supercargo, she had a list of our needs, and Juhani because I felt she needed some time with others. She had spent most of her time by herself.

One convoluted passageway led from the only docking bay that seemed accessible, and the main disbursement office. Along the way panels had been ripped out, and controls and systems cross-wired. I could see that someone had taken a lot of effort to get the module back in operation. We came to a door that didn't have a keypad. It had been ripped out, and a simple annunciator had been wired in instead. I shrugged, pushing the button.

"Who is it?" A voice asked in Rodian.

"I am Danika Wordweaver. I am on a mission for the Jedi Council."

"What the Jedi Council need with poor old Suvam Tam?" The voice asked.

"Our mission doesn't concern you directly. We came here to investigate."

"What you investigate? Why this still here?"

"Among other things, yes."

He or she sighed. "Not get anything done unless I talk to you, I assume. Wait, the last door sticks a bit." There was thumping and cursing in Rodian, then the door rolled open. Suvam Tam was a middle aged Rodian with a harried expression. "Look, see what you must, and let me get back to work." He said, turning to return to a workbench nearby.

I walked up to the docking control view, almost a hundred meters away, looking at the reddish glow of Yavin itself. The fourth moon was a gray and green planet, just coming back from what had been inflicted on it. "So sad."

"That Republic must destroy?" Suvam shrugged. "When fools settle in one place, it happens. I saw, and there was no choice." He hadn't looked up from what he was doing.

"You've been here since then?"

"Before." He slipped a monocular on, and was working on an antique weapon. "Exar Kun he bring Sith here, build many, many temples here to Dark side. Not want to do work themselves. They bring in slaves. Most work on buildings, but some," he thumbed his chest, "work on things needed to defend planet. Bases, weapons, those things.

"Best weapons makers Baragwin, you know Baragwin, right?" I nodded. "Some captured, others kidnapped. They make them work to make weapons. Big weapons." He moved his hands as if to show the size. "Small weapons, some for hand like those." He motioned toward the lightsaber at my belt.

"Me, I work for Baragwin master. Get taken with him. Him say I have gift. Can see what I want weapon to do before I even start building. He say 'when war over, we set up shop, make lot of credits'."

He sighed unhappily. "Master die in first attack. I captured by Republic. Interrogate much time, trying to get secrets I don't have. Then?" He waved toward the moon. "They smash planet to rock in a lot of places. Some slaves survive. Some don't."

"You were a slave?"

"No!" He looked surprised. "Use collar on _craftsman_? Not even Sith that stupid. No, we forced labor. Work or no eat. Work or we punish. Life very simple if that your choice."

"That is so sad." I pictured a little Rodian boy being starved because he wouldn't work.

He shrugged. "Not as bad as those building temples. Those that work die like insects. Work until they can work no more, then killed. Even finishing not good enough. Now you know a _secret_ they not want you to know. So you die anyway." He shrugged. "When moon was dead, Republic leave. Me I hid." He waved at the surroundings. "I stay to see what can be salvaged!"

I looked about. What he had been given in lieu of pay wasn't much. "You stayed to salvage?"

"Yes. Find I not like people as much as I did when I was young. Older than I look! Stay. Fix small ship to go down to surface to scavenge food, things left by dead. Many things I have found. Many need repair. Many of interest to Exchange or Trandoshan. Some very interesting to Corporations. Others of interest only to historians or collectors." He held up his current project, what looked like a half-melted lightsaber. "Last battle very bad. Many died below unable to fight back. Massassi all died. Poor Massassi." He turned back to what he was working on.

"But we received permission to dock."

"Yes. Davik visit a long time ago, Trandoshan, smugglers. They shift cargo from one to the other. Keep from bothering law when they do." He didn't look up.

"How are you set for supplies?"

"Food is adequate. Trandoshan bring, but not quality." He waved toward a crate marked E-rats. "Not good, but filling."

Mission seemed to mentally rub her hands together. "Well how long has it been since you tasted Zabu meat? Or Canthis bird? Or even Hypnar bird?"

Suvam looked up, and I could almost see his mouth watering. Mission pretended to ignore him. "Or Halo fruit and Donkin pears?"

"You have?"

"We have. Now if we can come to an agreement..."

I left her to it. There is nothing the Twi-lek enjoys more than haggling, and I saw that we had a professional in charge. I ignored the haggling, instead paying attention to the exhibits, for if anything this was a museum. Some of what he had was as good as the day it had been manufactured. But a lot had been damaged. I saw a Kerantonian disruptor rifle that had last been held by Exar Kun's Jedi guard, a plasma grenade powerful enough to destroy the station, now inert. Massassi swords as tall as I was, holocrons that held the sum of Exar Kun's teaching needing only the hand of those who could use the Force to bring them to life. I wanted to touch them, to feel this history.

The item that had been placed with honor was a 35-centimeter long double bladed lightsaber. I leaned forward, intent. The handle had been badly damaged, but it had been ornate and well thought out.

"You like?" Suvam opened the case. "Found in the citadel of Exar Kun himself!'

I wished it still worked. Better yet, if there had been provenance for the blade. Exar Kun's blade had looked like this, and his Jedi guard had copied it.

The stone called Heart of the Force had been part of Exar Kun's blade. A relic worth any price.

Mission finished negotiating. In return for ten kilos of Zabu meat, five each of both Hypnar and Canthis bird, with almost all of our Donkin pears thrown in, she had gotten us enough power packs for our assorted weapons. In addition four Seismic blast charges, a trio of proton torpedoes found in a wrecked ship below and a dozen assorted crystals usable in a lightsaber. A light saber can be altered to take additional stones, each crystal modulating the beam to make it stronger, or more efficient against specific targets. Once we knew for sure which these were, we could install them, making us more efficient.

It took us several hours to move our purchases to the ship. Once we were done, we lifted off, headed back to the hyper limit. The bedding was gone, and I set a flask of water beside Sasha's bolthole as we pushed outward.

Bastila was in the control room, and signaled me in. Master Vandar stood in midair in the holotank.

"Report, Padawan."

I reported the find. While you might think that there was nothing of value, the Sith would be searching for valuables, and Suvam Tam was in the position to sell it to them. I suggested a Jedi team come to buy anything of real importance.

Vandar nodded. "This we shall do when we have time. Bastila has told us of the child. She is strong in the Force?"

"As strong if not stronger than I, Master Vandar." I said. "Without training she has already learned to use some of her Force skills. Is there any word of who she might be?"

"The local records are vague. There was a Sasha ot Sulem who has been missing for almost five years now. Her age matches the one you have aboard." A holo appeared of a small girl in a pretty blue dress. "Her family home was destroyed in a Mandalorian raid, right after the Mandalorian Wars ended. All but she were found dead. She has been believed dead."

I looked at the picture. It could have been any young girl. But it could also have been Sasha. "She must have family. I will drop her off before we continue-"

"That you will not do. The mission must come first. Do you believe, as Bastila does, that she can be trained in the Force?"

I looked at Bastila. "She can be trained, but frankly can three Padawan handle what a Master must do?"

"You must handle it. Events move quickly, and Dantooine might become a target. People have been here searching for you both."

"I understand, Master."

"Good." The holo faded.

"Your orders?" Bastila asked.

I considered our mission. The closest of the planets we needed to investigate was Kashyyyk. However there was Mission's brother and Bastila's mother to consider. "Set course for Tatooine."

Enroute to Tatooine

Mission

When they told me about Sasha, I thought, great! Someone to play with! Then Danika told me that Sasha had slipped aboard, and was almost wild.

That could be a problem. There's a little feline type critter on Taris... Was a little feline type critter on Taris, called a Velet. I saw a Velet kit that had been separated from it's mama, and tried to coax it into coming with me. Griff had sort of chuckled at that. The idea of me having a big furry friend and a little one had amused him. But I had given up after about three hours.

Danika was a lot more patient than I was. She had come back aboard after Yavin, and somewhere on the station she had gotten a big tub like they use for cleaning machine parts. After scrubbing it out, she had set it down in the cargo bay. Then she had run hoses from the water line in the cargo hold and filled it.

I heard splashing, and went to look. First thing I learned aboard was any noise out of the ordinary, like free standing water say, can be a danger. Danika was in the cargo hold, stripped to the waist, washing herself with just a washrag and soap. I can't tell really what a human considers attractive. Her chest was bigger than mine but nowhere near Lena's. When she moved I could see muscles rippling. Man how long did it take to get muscles like that?

"Is the 'fresher broken?" I asked.

"No, Mission." I'm trying to coax Sasha out to bathe. I felt it would convince her if she saw me doing the same." She loosened the chignon her hair was in, and ducked her head, picking up the shampoo. I hadn't considered that a human had to wash their hair separately when they wash. Me I just scrub everything, and my Lekku get done as I do. Humans can make even the simplest things more complex. "Mission, how are you with a needle and thread?"

"Me? What do you want? A wound sewed closed?"

"No. All Sasha has to wear are rags. I want to alter some of my clothes to fit her. It wasn't like there was anything to be had on Yavin."

"Well if that's what you want, leave me out. Maybe Zaalbar can help."

"Ask him for me."

I did, and came back. He'd never worn clothes, and didn't understand altering them any more than I did. Bastila was meditating, as was the Cathar woman Juhani. Carth merely shook his head. Canderous scared me, so I was afraid to ask him.

She took it well. She had dried her upper body, and had stripped off from the waist down, scrubbing her legs. I heard a sound, and there she was, this little slip of a girl moving toward Danika. I didn't say anything, and Danika seemed to be ignoring her.

The girl growled at me. I could see her attacking me like an animal. "_Sooka-fro majik_?" Danika said. The girl looked at her. "_Toka amkris_ Mission Vao."

The girl looked at me, and seemed to settle back. "_Ch-aka Borode_, Mission Vao."

"What does that mean?"

"I talked to Canderous. She speaks a dialect called Goodar among the Mando'a. Common on only one continent. I asked her if she thought you were a danger, and told her your name. She replied, 'I see you, Mission Vao'. That group's way of saying hello when you first meet someone."

The girl was creeping closer, and Danika looked back at her. "_Brakeesh_!" She pinched her nose. "_Wata nu zooka_!"

The girl sniffed herself, then came closer. She dropped her clothes with no sense of modesty. I hissed when I saw the weals on her back, the bruises on her arms legs and chest. She was only half my age but someone had beaten her badly several times from the look of it.

"Mission, ask Juhani to give you a small med kit. I don't think we're going to convince Sasha to climb voluntarily into a Bacta tank any time soon."

I ran to get it. I wanted to shoot whoever had done that to a kid myself. When I came back, Danika had gotten Sasha into the tub, and was scrubbing her down. As she did she made comments, some of them rough, some chiding as she scraped dirt and grease off her. I came back in, and for a moment I thought Sasha would bolt. But Danika whispered to her, and the kid settled down. She opened the med kit, and as she washed the girl, gently began treating her injuries. There wasn't a lot she could do for the bruising, but the whip and belt marks were coated in synthflesh. She began shampooing Sasha's hair as I went to get a set of clothes from Danika's locker.

When I came back it was like they had gone out and gotten someone else to fill in for Sasha. With the filth washed out of it, Sasha's hair was a reddish wheat-gold that reached almost to her waist. She was still thin but the last few days had been good at filling her out. Danika started to braid her own hair, and Sasha held some of her own to look at while she did. When Danika was finished, Sasha touched the tight weave of hair, then put Danika's hand on her own with a questioning sound. Danika turned her, and began weaving Sasha's hair as she had her own.

When she was done, she turned the girl around, looking her over. Then Danika handed her the tunic. On Danika it reached to her upper thighs. On Sasha it was a knee length dress. Danika tightened the belt, rolling up the sleeves until Sasha's hands stuck out. "_Mootifoos_?"

"_Kajat_." The girl said, rubbing her hands down the cloth then looked up questioning. "_Sho-te_?"

"Ya."

The girl hugged herself, delighted. Then she bolted past Danika, scurrying back into the duct.

"Well that was a failure." I said.

"No, Mission it was not. I can speak to her, I convinced her to take a bath, and she let me treat her injuries. It is a good beginning. Never decide you have failed until you have tried everything."

"More Jedi wisdom?"

She looked at me with a slight grin. "No, that is Danika 101."

Enroute to Tatooine

Danika

Things went much better than I might have hoped with Sasha. She accepted all of the female members of our band, and even seemed enthralled by Zaalbar. But if either Carth or Canderous came by she went into her bolthole again until they had left. There had been a small crystal figurine I had found on Yavin station, and I had given it to her when I got back. She was delighted with it, and carried it with her as if afraid it would be taken away again.

With the initial help of Canderous, I was able to pick up her language more readily, and she was able to tell me her story. She remembered 'the wonderful place' where she had lived with two people obviously her parents. Then the Mandalorian raiders came. She had heard explosions, screaming, and her father had told her to run. She had tried, but a Duros had brought her down with a stun gun, and she had been taken to a camp in one of the many caves on Dantooine. There she had been thrust into the arms of a woman. Her life there had been misery from that point on.

Angry men slapping her if she cried because she wanted to go home, the desperate arms of the woman that had become briefly her mother. Though still too young to understand the reasoning, she had been assigned to help the women in maintaining the camp. Feeding the men when they returned, cleaning and cooking. The woman that had hugged her had disappeared during the intervening years. Sasha didn't know what had happened to her, but men had come, and they had locked a collar around her neck and dragged her off. There were other women, but they had disappeared as the first one had over the years until it had been only her and three older women. At least older than me from what she could tell.

Then things had changed. A Mandalorian and three Duros had left, and not returned. Then it happened again. This time it was two Mandalorian and three Duros. The loudest of her captors had taken all but one Duros, and left. They had also not returned. This had been the only time in all their captivity that all but one had been gone, and the women used it.

The women attacked and killed the last Duros less than an hour after their departure and fled. Sasha had been left alone. She had heard them speaking before the fight, and while she hadn't understood the Basic they used, had felt maybe it was because the women thought she was a child of the 'Manlorey'. That she was Mando'a.

She had run as well, and scavenged for a day. Then she had come upon a building. It had been a supply depot manned only by droids. They had been loading a cargo lifter, and she had broken into a box and found manna from heaven, more food than she had eaten at any one time in years. She had dumped a lot of it out, making a place where she could hide, had gorged until she was full, then slept. She had been terrified when the crate had been loaded onto a lifter, and had lay frozen until the movement stopped. Finally she opened it, she had been aboard the ship.

Three days into the voyage to Tatooine we were settling down to dinner when everyone hushed. Sasha was standing there in the hatchway, holding her figurine, watching us. Her eyes strayed to both Carth and Canderous as if she was unsure if she should even try to join us.

Canderous stood, then bowed. "_Motben salik_." He said. The girl slowly came forward, and huddled up against me.

"You honor us?" I repeated in Basic.

He shrugged. "The raiders dishonored so many. I may die before I repay everything they have done. This one is among us, and if she were among our people or on my homeworld, I would adopt her into our clan, and give her every honor to repay even a tithe of that pain. If she has any remaining family my clan would beggar themselves to reunite them. It is our way."

Sasha ate with us from that point on. She still stayed out of arm's reach of the men, but began following the women about to see what we did. But at night she slept in her den. Mission had crawled into the ducts while she was with me one day, and my heart almost broke when she told me what she had found. Sasha had taken cargo pads and made a rough bed, the blanket and pillow I had given her neatly folded atop it. She had taken small items we had not missed to make it more comfortable.

Two nights later, I awoke to find her huddled against me. She came awake, and whimpered. In a soft whisper she asked "_Mata_?"

"_Sho_." I whispered. "Danika."

"_Laesfra_." She whispered, snuggling closer.

"Yes, you're safe here." I went back to sleep with that small form in my arms.

She grew stronger in the Force. One time I came through the cargo bay, and she was sitting in imitation of me when I meditated. Before her, even with her eyes, the figurine danced. She laughed with delight. She watched the Jedi among us practicing, and I saw her trying to imitate our fluid movements. Later she snarled when I brought out a remote to practice against. I discovered that her captors had used remotes with their weapons set on the most painful setting they had without killing to guard their prisoners when they slept. She would touch our lightsabers, and I could see the yearning in her eyes. She wanted to learn how they worked so that no one would ever hurt her again.

I caught her that evening with one of the lightsabers I had retrieved on Dantooine. She had activated it, and was reaching for the blade with wonder in her eyes.

"No, Sasha." I said. She flinched, and I flinched as well when the blade came within a millimeter of cutting her hand. I clucked my tongue, and she opened her hand allowing me to take the lightsaber. I went to the other cargo hold, and used the workbench to convert it has Master Vandar had. I showed her that this blade would not cut, but would hurt. From that day on, she began practicing with a lightsaber.

We all rotated in teaching her the ways of the force. Bastila taught her meditation, Juhani how to move things and honed her innate ability to move without being noticed, I taught her the physical skills. She picked up hand to hand combat readily. Partially because the Mandalorians had practiced while she watched, but mostly for the same reason. I was here, and she understood that any aboard would protect her. But she had an urge to protect herself.

We were a day out from Tatooine when it happened.

_ I saw a cave opening, large enough for the _Ebon Hawk _to dock in. I walked through it. A body of what had once been a Jedi sprawled to one side, and I mourned his passing as I walked by. The back of the cave held a few pitiful remains of an alien people's glory. A statue of a species with eyes set on stalks out of the sides of the head lay trampled by some great weight. Pillars had been pushed aside and cracked. _

_ In the center however, lay the star map we sought as if it had been installed that very day and artfully coated with dust to fake it's age. I walked toward it, hand out as if to touch it. Behind me I heard a deafening roar. I turned-_

-I snapped awake. Sasha was curled against me in what had become her customary spot. I had tried once to bed her down with the other women, but she returned to share my bed. I kissed her gently on the head, and drifted back to sleep.


	14. Tatooine: Understanding the Mission

Tatooine:

Bastila

We dropped out of hyperspace, and plunged toward the actinic yellow ball of Tatooine. A survey ship that had discovered it had recently sold the planet to the Czerka Corporation less than two decades earlier. It is best know for the blowing sand, which is the only constant. Millennia ago, there had been a great cataclysm, and the surface had been scorched. The wind had spent those millennia wearing away the once glassy surface to an almost uniform sandy structure. There were few oases, and these shown in brilliant green specks on an otherwise bland yellow surface.

But there is still life. Life that would surprise anyone who saw only those blowing wastes. There were two intelligent species that called it home, the Jawa, and the ubiquitous Tusken Raiders, better known to the few that visited as the Sand People. It is home to the Bantha, which has become a staple commodity, being transported throughout the galaxy as beasts of burden. The dewback, an enormous lizard used on the planet by the settlers as riding animals also were native. The Wraid Dragon and Krayt dragons, two of the largest predators known to the Republic, and a host of lesser animals.

"We'll be landing in about an hour. Let everyone know." Carth instructed.

I went aft. Danika sat at the table with Sasha, both nibbling on some cake that Zaalbar had made. I noticed how the younger girl mimicked Danika's every reaction to the confection.

"Well we had another vision." Danika said. She hadn't looked at me.

"Yes. Surprising really, Tatooine is only know for blowing sand and inhospitable natives."

"Perhaps it wasn't always a wasteland." She opined. "After all, it has been over 30,000 years since the map was emplaced."

"We would assume so, yes." I agreed cautiously. "However if the Star map were on the surface, it might have been worn to almost uselessness by now."

"Or it's in a cave somewhere as we saw it."

"I agree. However if it is in a cave, that presents us with other problems. The animals of the planet would use such caves as lairs. Not to mention the Sand People could have done the same. No doubt we shall discover this when we find it."

She nodded. "Bastila?"

"Yes?"

"You're thinking of your mother." I damned that link yet again.

"Yes. It was strange to hear from her after so long. It has been quite distracting. I can't help wondering what she wants with me after all this time."

"Yes." She took a forkful of her own cake, and stuffed it into Sasha's mouth. The girl made a noise of protest, but grinned as she chewed. "Why did the council send you along on this mission?"

I considered. "They felt you needed a cooler head along, and since I have this link to you, I was the obvious choice. Besides the events on Taris and the bond that formed between us really left them no choice. When the Force directs, even the Masters of the order must bow to it."

"I just thought it was strange that none of the masters could be free to go with us."

"I must admit that I have wondered the same thing. I thought perhaps this is more than simply a mission to stop Malak. I thought perhaps a test of my own abilities under trying circumstances."

"I know something else is going on here. I almost feel like Carth. Sure that someone is out to get me."

"Resist those thoughts. I actually thought for a moment that this was a test to see if I am worthy of becoming a master." She looked at me, and I a barked laugh at her look. "Silly me, I suppose. I think that the reason they gave was the truth. They couldn't spare a master if his presence were to draw attention to our mission. No, my dear Padawan, they picked the most palatable of the alternatives."

"I suppose you're right."

"Well get your war council hat on, we will be arriving in less than an hour."

Anchorhead

Danika

I left Sasha to complete the destruction of the cake, and went to the med station. Juhani had taken it as her own quarters, and was seated, meditating. She opened her eyes after a time.

"May I help you?" She asked.

"I wanted to make sure you were all right."

"I thank you for your concern, but I am still shaken by how close I came to destroying myself." She looked down. "I was reliving my anger, Quarta's injury at my hands, and my fall. I can see within me that the fury I had felt is still there, bottled up inside me. Close to me as a predator gets when it is about to leap. I will never be free of it."

"I think you will in time. That is all you really need right now."

"It is kind of you to say so. I think that is why the Council sent me along with you. You are like a breath of fresh air in a fetid den. It helps at night when my beast rises."

"Juhani, I will watch over you as best I can. I will warn you and lend my strength to you in any way to help you resist this."

"I thank you for those words, and your acceptance. I will strive to remain worthy of your trust and company."

I brought her with me, and we settled down around the table. Only Carth was busy, but he knew what he would be doing.

"All right, when we land, I will take Canderous and Bastila with me. Mission will be aboard and you Zaalbar will make sure of our supplies. Mission, I promise we will stop at the Czerka offices to find out about your brother. After we return we will discuss further options. Agreed?" Mission didn't look happy, and I understood that. But Anchorhead is a rough town. The documentation we scanned from the planet had mentioned that the town had the highest incident of violent crime in the sector and suggested that everyone go armed. Having Canderous with us would actually convince people not to bother us.

_Ebon Hawk _settled down, and we disembarked. A harried looking customs official came up to us, holding a datapad.

"Welcome to Anchorhead. Czerka Corporation stands ready to be of service as soon as we get past the formalities. This ship reads as the _Ebon Hawk_. But the registry number is new. Is there a reason for that?"

"I purchased it from Davik Kang." I replied. "The registry is now in my name."

"Ah, yes. Danika Wordweaver, right?" I nodded. He made a tick mark on his pad. "Well since you are new, I have to charge you the entire fee of 100 credits. Is that all right?"

I nodded, hiding my wince. That was twice what the average core system charged.

The customs man leaned toward me to whisper. "Just between you and me, the company had to jack the rates up because this isn't a paying world if you know what I mean. Poor metal quality, the lack of hunters-"

"Hunters?" I asked.

"Yes. When they started having problems with the ore, Czerka noticed that there are a lot of really big life forms on this planet. They billed it as the best hunting in the galaxy!"

"I'm from Deralia." I commented.

"You see the problem they ran into. There are half a dozen animals here worth hunting, but compared to your home world this is really tame."

"You mentioned the metal problem?"

"Well." He looked around. "If you scan the planet from orbit, you'll find concentrations of just about everything. A lot of it is what's left of shipwrecks, some of them tens of thousands of years old. Czerka looked at that, and figured they'd struck it rich. But then they arrived and found out that all of those wrecks were gutted. The Sand People and the Jawa have stripped out anything usable. It makes me cry to think a 30,000-year-old baffle plate off an engine makes a grill the Jawa cook on!" He shook his head. "But the hulls were still electro bonded and the locals couldn't break that. Do you know what processed durasteel is worth? Enough to buy your ship ten times over in kiloton job lots.

"The Corp shipped in sand crawlers, specially designed, mind you, to collect the wreckage, and smelt it down. Seemed to be working, but then we discovered that while the hull metal appears to be durasteel in every way you can test it, it shatters like glass if you hit it with a 4 kilo sledgehammer. Not what you want between you and space even if you don't expect combat. They can't explain it. It's almost like the molecular matrix is flawed, though no one can figure out why.

"When buyers found that out we couldn't sell it even at scrap prices. They decided to try the 'hunter's paradise" gambit but that hasn't worked either. I can see us dumping the planet as a dead loss in a few years."

"Has a woman named Helena Shan been through?" Bastila asked.

"Three weeks ago.

Bastila sighed. "Where did you see her?"

"She walked into the Anchorhead Cantina a week ago as if she owned the place, and has been there ever since."

"So she is still there?" I asked.

"Unless someone killed her. She hasn't moved except to sleep, and she doesn't do a lot of that unfortunately. There have been complaints." He waved to us, and went on his way.

Bastila stood there, eyes closed. Her calm center was fraying even as I watched. "I think we had best find her quickly. She has no patience when it comes to waiting."

We checked the local visitor's map, and located the Cantina, which was by the town gates. We started that way, Bastila storming in the lead. We came around a corner, and I grabbed her, pulling her back.

A Dark Jedi stepped from a shadow, followed by two more. "Lord Malak wants a word with you, Bastila. After we've taken your friends down, we can discuss it." He reached out, and Bastila fell, writhing as the Dark Jedi tormented her. The Jedi turned. I could see his eyes widen at the sight of me. "It's not possible!"

The others looked at each other, then with a scream, they charged. I caught the first as he passed, leaping over his blade, and cutting from above, splitting his head as I landed. The second was busy deflecting bolts from Canderous' rifle. Then he flinched back as Canderous aimed at the ground, blowing melted sand into his face. I charged the one that was pinning Bastila down, and he went down in a welter of blood. I turned, the last dark Jedi charging me, then suddenly his chest opened up like a flower as Canderous put a bolt worthy of a vehicle through it. He looked at me.

"Only a fool turns his back on a living Mandalorian warrior." He said laconically.

I noticed that except for those that had ducked out of the line of fire, no one was paying us the least attention. Once the shooting stopped people began pushing through on their own business. I checked the bodies, finding four light sabers, one of them a double-headed design. The hand that had wielded it was the same size as mine, and I flipped it to check the balance. I would work on it.

A Jawa came toward where the fight had occurred, struggling with a bag almost as large as himself. "Could you use some help?" I asked.

The hooded face came up looking at me. "Yours do not care about ours. Do you miss those the sand ghosts have taken from the tribe of Iziz?"

"Those the sand ghosts have taken?" I knelt on one knee to look him in the eye. "Are some of your people missing?"

"Is this interest?" The tone suggested only a slight amount of sarcasm. "Not from your kind is this usual, though Iziz thinks better of your kind than most. If in truth this is interest speak to him. If it is not, then leave us in our misery." He struggled to lift the bag. "Tired of giant-speak. Might as well slave for the ghosts as talk with your kind."

I reached down, plucking the sack from his hand. "First you will tell me where this goes, and I will walk with you a short time."

He harrumphed, then led toward the gate. A moisture farmer's lifter was there, and he stopped me before the farmer could see us. He struggled the bag over, dodging a cuffing hand, and ran back the way he had come.

Iziz. I would have to remember that name.

Bastila was focused, and I could feel her anxiety through the bond.

The Cantina was a small structure dug into the sand to provide some cooling from the scorching suns. She paused, hand against the door as if she could reach through it. "We won't get this over with standing out here." I whispered.

"I know that." She hissed. She was seething inside, and I reached out, letting a calming thought flow over her. She spun, glaring. "Get out of my mind!"

I eased off, and she spun back, slamming the button to open it. It was dark in comparison to the outside, a few people standing at the bar, or at tables. However there was a wide gap around one table. The woman there looked worn and ill used by life. I could feel a darkness. Not evil, but pain, grief, and, soon in her mind, death. Bastila froze, and I moved past her. The way her mind was roiling, we would have stood there until the Galaxy died of old age.

"Helena Shan?" I asked. She looked up, squinting.

"Yes. I'm sorry, do I know you?"

Bastila stepped forward finally. "I am here, mother." Then her voice grew sharp. "Or don't you recognize me?"

Helena looked at her. I could see her wanting to say so much, reacting more to the tone of voice than what she saw. "How would I know what you looked like? All I have is pictures of you as a child. Do you know how long I have been looking for you?" The tone was sharper than Bastila's.

"You knew as well as I that communications would be impossible once I joined the order." She stiffened. "So what is this all about, and where is father?"

Helena seemed to shrink. "Then you haven't heard. I might have known."

"Well? Are you going to answer my question or not? Spit it out!"

"You're father... He's dead, Bastila." She clutched her drink. She signaled, and the bartender brought another. "He died last month."

"Last month." Bastila's tone was brittle. I felt something die inside her, and its death stoked the furnace of her anger. "What happened? What did you talk him into this time?"

Helena was awash in pain, and like Bastila struck out from it. "My, what a nice family reunion." She looked at me. "Do you treat your mother this way?"

"My mother died when I was young." I replied.

"Well I will join her soon enough, we can compare notes on our daughters!"

"Enough, mother. I was told you were sick, was that sheer melodrama or what?"

"Such sweet words you have for me." She sighed, sipping her drink and making a face. "I had best tell you everything before we start arguing again."

"Start with how you got father killed."

"If I had known that becoming a Jedi would have made you even more spiteful, I would have never suggested it. Do you want to hear that I talked him into coming here? That way you can blame me for his death. You never understood that these expeditions were what he enjoyed the most. That is why you always ended up with me! I was always the blame for all of your problems with him, what else is new?"

She sipped again. I closed my eyes, trying to smell what she was drinking. It was hard, because a bar has so many smells. I listened as I started removing different odors. A fairly useful talent when you learn to do it instinctively. Picture knowing that something has been added to the atmosphere immediately!

"So yes, you're absolutely right as always. I brought your father here last month to try to collect some Krayt Dragon pearls. He went with an expedition that was wiped out in the Dune Sea."

"He might have survived! He was an experienced hunter-"

"I wish it were so. But the only survivor was a bearer. A krayt dragon attacked as they were setting up camp. He saw the rest of the team die." She looked at Bastila helplessly. "Considering how well we get along, do you think I would have tried to contact you myself otherwise?"

"So what do you want from me? Credits? A shoulder to cry on?"

"Damn you, no! I know something about the training you have undertaken. I was hoping you could get your father's holocron and bring it to me."

"Why? So you can sell it? Or write a book based on his misguided life-"

"Shut up!" Helen stood as I identified what she had been drinking. Kolto-laced wine. "Is it so impossible that perhaps I want something to remember my husband by?" She glared at Bastila, then settled back, looking away. "You needn't have bothered to come, then."

Mother we are on an important mission for the Jedi Council-"

"You always were. We have been trying to contact you for three years now, but you were always too busy!" She sipped the drink. "Like always."

"Bastila." I said. "Ask about her sickness."

"Why?" She glared at me. "It has nothing to do with what she wants! It's just a ploy knowing her." She glared at her mother again. "Well, mother? Are you going to admit it?"

Helena glared back at her. "Believe what you want. All I ask is that you retrieve Brean's holocron. Once I have that you are rid of me."

"Just what I would have expected from you." Bastila turned. "If we happen to pass by where he died, I will see about finding it. Once that is done I have no other reason to even speak with you again." She turned and stalked away. I looked at Helena, seeing the pain she had been unwilling to show Bastila lest it be taken as weakness. I touched her hand, and followed.

Outside, Bastila was standing, staring at the sand at her feet.

"Bastila-"

"Don't even speak to me!" She spun. "The only thing she and I had in common was father, and now that he's dead, I want nothing to do with her!"

"Why didn't you ask her about her sickness?" I asked.

"I can't be objective about that woman. I doubt she is sick. She was always lying about things to get her own way. My father leaped through hoops thanks to her, and with him gone..." She turned away. "With him gone now she thinks I will do the same."

"You sound so, bitter."

"I worked for years to remove that anger. I thought I had. But just seeing her, it's like I'm five again." She shook her head. "We have things to do."

We walked over to the city gate, but a Czerka guard stopped us. We couldn't leave without a hunter's permit, and we had to return to the Czerka Corporation office to get it.

I wasn't feeling to comfortable with Bastila right then. She had closed down the bond so tightly that I felt stifled. I knew distance wouldn't help, but I was sure that not being close enough to rip each other apart might help. I went back to the ship, left Canderous and Bastila there, and went back out with Mission in tow.

Tatooine

Mission

I was looking forward to seeing Griff again, but at the same time, I dreaded it. When Danika came to get me I threw on my armor picked up my weapons, and was after her at a jog.

She went to the Czerka Corp office, and we went in.

The local rep was trying to talk to a Duros. Or rather, was listening as he screamed at her. "You haven't heard the end of this you puppet! I am not going to let the massacre of an entire village of Sand people occur because you won't negotiate!"

"What is going on here?" Danika asked softly. The Duros spun, glaring at her. "I have had enough of this! I don't think she wants to listen, and I know the Corporation doesn't give a damn! No accountability! That's the problem with owning everything on a planet!" He grumbled a few curses I made sure to remember.

The rep watched him go, then turned a brilliant smile on us. I'm just glad she wasn't selling used land speeders. "Welcome to the offices of Czerka Corporation, Tatooine. I trust I can help you?" She grimaced. "If it is about employment as a miner, I am afraid our crews are full at the moment. We have also suspended sale of Hunter's licenses. We have too many people out there rather than using our services as it is."

"Griff!" I blurted.

Danika looked at me, but didn't complain. "We are looking for one of your employees. Griff Vao."

"Griff..." The rep seemed to be confused, then looked at me. Her eyes widened. "Of course. I remember him. Not fondly. Not a good worker. Always complaining, falsifying work records, faking injuries.

"We had started an investigation in the belief that he was stealing corporate property. We would have fired him if the Sand People hadn't gotten to him first."

"What?" She flinched back at my shout.

"He went missing during a Sand People raid about a month ago. Our rescue team reported that some of the workers had been taken prisoner, but it wasn't cost effective to try to attack the village. After all, our miners all sign waivers that absolve us of liability in these cases."

"So your workers are all expendable." Danika said as she caught my arm. I didn't know if pulling hair was as painful as pulling Lekku, but I was willing to find out.

"Good heavens, no! Czerka Corporation considers every one of our employees as a valuable asset. That is why we have been paying bounties for the Sand People! As for this young man, his body was not found, so he is either a prisoner, or beyond the boundary of our corporate lands."

"Our business is out there." Danika said. "I require permission to leave the town."

"Part of the reason we suspended selling licenses was because of the Sand People of the closest village." She looked at Danika speculatively. "However I could make an exception if you could perform a service for the Corporation."

"What manner of service?"

"As I said, the raiders of the Truuata village to the southwest have been a constant menace. The chieftain has launched attack after attack, and nothing we have done has slowed them. They attack our miners, destroy our sand crawlers, it has become unacceptable."

"And what would you have me do?"

"I thought it was obvious. I will give you a license, and a bounty for every gaffi stick you collect. If you should collect the Chieftain's stick, I will pay an extra bonus."

"Why the gaffi sticks?" Danika asked, then motioned sarcastically. "Isn't a bounty usually paid for the heads instead?"

She didn't seem to get the sarcasm. "And what do you think I want dumped on my desk?" The woman replied. "Besides, they are ceremonial weapons, and are unique to both the tribe and the warrior."

Danika nodded. "Very well."

"Wait." The woman moved to her desk, brought up something on her main computer, then transferred it to a datapad. "This is an enforceable contract. Czerka Corporation considers this a very important problem, and will litigate as necessary if you violate it."

Danika looked at the contract, scrolling through it with meticulous care. Then she thumb printed it.

"Very well. Here is your license and your copy of the contract. The village is to the southwest. Now is there anything else?"

"No." Danika led me outside, then hugged me. "If he's alive, we will find him, Mission."

"I know. But she burned my jets! 'After all, our miners all sign waivers that absolve us of liability'!" I wanted to rip out that black hair. "And you've promised to kill them!'

"No, I did not. The wording of the contract was very vague. I am to 'deal with the problem expeditiously'. Is there anything there that suggests I am to kill anyone?"

"No." I said slowly.

"But you will." We turned. The Duros that had been arguing with the rep was standing there. "You're kind don't think of any other way.'

"If you intend to insult us, could we at least have your name?" Danika asked.

"Dayso Cooh. A registered correspondent for the Conservation Monthly. There is always a way to find a peaceful solution. They're just lazy." He jerked a thumb toward the office. "The Sand People are intelligent. Anyone that has survived an attack speaks of how well planned they are. There must be a way to communicate with them. But does Czerka care?" He shook his head angrily. "Ten hunters have already accepted this little commission of Representative Bakri. Some of their heads have been left outside the gates. Since you can't leave without corporate approval, she can make this a condition when she issues a license."

"Who started the attacks?"

"Honestly? The Sand People did." Dayso admitted. "But look at it as if that was your home." He waved toward the sand. "Czerka sets up here, where every other settlement has failed, brings in massive sand crawlers, and begins ripping up their home. Does the Corporation ask? Of course not! They own the planet! Just ask the Republic! It was an invasion with no mention of why, no offer to buy rights, no nothing! What would you have them do?

"I don't think they should have begun killing immediately, but I am always hopeful that someone will at least try to talk."

"There haven't been attempts to talk before?" Danika was astonished.

Dayso looked uncomfortable. "Well, yes there have." He admitted. "But they refuse to learn any of our languages, and most of the translation droids lock up when they try to translate. There was even some Jedi here a few years ago, but even their attempt ended in blood.

"I'm not saying it would be easy! But with a proper translator droid it would at least be possible."

"Yes, I could see what would be a problem." She sighed. "Without such a droid, I may end up spilling blood too."

"But there might be a way." Dayso said. "The Ithorian Yuka Laka has a droid he claims speaks the local Sand People dialect. Of course he'd say rust was pure gold if it meant a sale."

"With the droid then-"

"Of course common Sand People don't negotiate. Only the Chieftain has the authority. You'd have to get to their encampment. That would also be a problem."

"Must I pull the problems out of you as if they were teeth?" Danika asked.

"Sorry. You would be attacked immediately dressed in anything other than their own style of clothing. Perhaps you could take them off the bodies of some Sand People. A droid could travel without that of course. They've captured quite a few, and use them to maintain their defenses."

"Defenses?" Danika waved toward the door. "They seem to think the Sand People have trouble feeding themselves without help."

"Well I have recordings of that encampment." Dayso looked around. "Don't tell her, but they have mines scattered between them and the Dune Sea along the entry into their valley. Turrets they've stolen off sand crawlers that their droids have rigged up to defend the last vale. It isn't an easy trip."

"I will try to find a peaceful option Danika said. "This droid shop is where?"

He directed us, and we walked through the streets. The shop like every permanent structure was buried in the sand. Danika stepped in, and stopped.

"A customer perhaps?" Yuka Laka set down his tools, and came toward us. "If there is anything you need that my shop can supply, don't hesitate to ask. I have a new droid ready now for sale. A translator droid that might have been used for security since it also has armor and weapons mounts. Its designation is HK47." He waved toward the side.

There was a droid in the corner like none I have ever seen. It was bipedal, like a protocol or historical droid, but the metal finish was a flat red. The head was a boxy carapace, with a small set of visual receptors. Weapons mounts was right, it had what you would have expected on a war droid. As I looked at it, the head rotated, and it looked back at me.

"HK? What does that designation stand for?" Danika asked.

"I have no idea." Laka admitted. "But nothing is wrong with it beyond a problem dumping its memory core. The machine claims to speak several million languages including three dialects of the local Sand People and four Jawa dialects. It has a comprehensive databank of military functions, and could easily operate as a war droid." He glared at the machine. "Stupid machine doesn't know how to sell itself, though. I had some moisture farmers in yesterday, and it just stood there like a lump and ignored them." He fingered the control for the restraining bolt on his hip. The look he gave the droid was worried.

"Maybe it will talk to me." Danika said. She walked across to the droid.

The head turned to watch us, and I got the feeling of fury tightly leashed from it. The hands were twice the size of mine, and clenched slowly.

"You are HK47?"

"Pleasant rejoinder: Yes, prospective buyer." The voice was atonal, and harsh.

"Tell me about yourself."

"Personal designation: HK series model 47, unit 1, manufactured by Systech of Telos. My functions include translation, combat, and-" It paused. "Other duties that a discerning purchaser would rather not hear when Yuka Laka is within hearing. Query, will you purchase me?"

"Explain more of your functions."

"Careful Disclosure: Considering the greed of my present owner, the full range of my capabilities would only result in his raising the price until I cannot be sold." The head turned. "That would be... unacceptable."

"Hasn't he tried to find this out already?"

"Affirmation: However he soon decided that staying out of arm's reach was preferable to dealing with me. Let us just say I can handle all protocol needs, serve canapes, and if the guests get unruly, remove them cleanly."

Danika leaned forward. "Let me guess. Your designation stands for Hunter-Killer I assume?" She whispered.

"Fervent Denial: Such a unit, if autonomous as I am, would be skirting the boundary of legalities except during time of war." HK replied. The voice dropped softer. "But if that form of legality is not a problem, affirmative. I would be wasted on a moisture farmer, or some woman who needs her house cleaned. I would much rather be out of here, away from that being." The head came up, and the voice came back to full volume. "Ithorian, physical actions, strike behind eyestalk at 15th cervical vertebrae. Death is immediate." I could hear a yelp of dismay from Laka.

"I told you to stop that!" Laka was quivering as if he was going to explode.

"Warning: My primary function has been engaged." The right hand came up, and the barrel of a blaster slid out. There was a click and bleep, then the hiss of an empty chamber. "Destruction of all unauthorized life forms will commence."

Laka fumbled up the control, and there was a buzzing from HK. "It keeps doing that too. Someone almost blasted it yesterday."

"I see you have a problem with it." Dankia commented dryly.

"Yes I do." Laka looked irritated. "A good chunk of its memory core is inaccessible, and according to it, any attempt to delete it, or access it without proper codes will cause it to immediately self-destruct. There is supposed to be a Class one thermal detonator inside that glob of grease. Though if there is, it is well concealed and shielded from detection."

I flinched, looking at the room. Class One? Not even the _block_ would survive that! "Maybe I could take a look at it?" I asked.

"If your companion damages it, I will have to charge you."

"I understand. Mission?"

I walked warily to stand beside the droid, and popped it's service access. From the thickness of the armor, I was sure it could take at least three blaster bolts to penetrate it. There were ships I had seen with less armor. I knelt to get a better look. "HK," I whispered, how much of what you told Laka is true?"

"Careful Disclosure: The thermal detonator is a lie." It whispered back. "But I am programmed to eliminate everyone in the room if any attempt is made to access my sealed programming, and that is hardwired. There is one section that should be accessible, but is not. Surmise: The restraining bolt might be blocking it."

I nodded, pretending to check the systems. The power core had enough shunts to support a defense shield against an Ion grenade and the other arm had a disruptor mount, also drained. "Where did you get this model?" I asked the proprietor

"A Czerka warehouse off world. The quartermaster there owed someone here a debt, and sent this. He said they'd never miss it. But I know it's not Czerka manufacture."

I nodded. "This is your combat circuitry?" I whispered, touching a line.

"Affirmative." I whistled. This thing could carry any weapon a man might, and use any of them without further modification. Someone had taken the concept of a war droid past where most would even think of allow it. I closed the panel. "Done."

"Understood."

I went back over to Danika and whispered. "I don't know who made it, but I can think of only one real use. I think it's an assassin."

"Well we won't hold that against it." Danika said. She began talking with Laka, and finally got him to settle for 2500 credits. The Ithorian looked relieved to get the behemoth out of his shop. He deactivated the restraining bolt, then rearmed HK's weapons.

"HK, I have purchased you."

"Exclamation: My joy knows no bounds, master." The head turned to lock on Laka. "Shall I show it by eliminating someone?"

"No. Just come with me."

"Understood." The voice sounded a bit peeved.

Outside, the suns were past noon. Danika stopped, then flinched as a small group of Jawa came over.

I don't understand Jawa, but HK told me what was said later.

"You are going into the desert to deal with the giant ones, yes?" One of them asked.

"I will be going that way, yes." Danika replied fluently.

"Then our chieftain would ask a boon of you." The Jawa motioned toward another standing a short distance from the gates. We walked over, and he turned to face us. Most people seem to think of Jawa as merely scavengers with little or no morals. I don't know if that is true, but this one had a curious dignity.

"I am Iziz, leader of the small tribe that resides here in this settlement. You are by your actions, a leader of the same sort." He said. "One of my people spoke of you. That you asked concerning some on mine that have been taken. That you helped him with a burden unasked. You are going to confront the giants of the sand?"

"Do you mean the Sand People?"

"Such is what you call them. Even in their own language, that is a simplistic designation. The desert ghosts have taken some of my people, and I would ask you to return them."

"Taken?"

"Your kind allows us to live here, and trust us not. But you do not enslave or brutalize us. They however have no such restraint. Many of mine have been taken, and they are forced to work for the giants. Horned giants take us. If choose we must, we would prefer your way."

"So you want me to rescue them."

"Yes," He hummed a moment. "Speaking in your languages is difficult for us. I believe in your society it is right to give something in return for such an act? We have much knowledge of the sands of our world. If there is anything we could supply, you have but to ask."

Danika knelt, and drew a sketch of the Star Map we found on Dantooine. "Have you seen something like this?"

"Yes. It is in the Eastern Dune Sea. Much distance away. Landspeeder is needed. The cave is also home to a great dragon."

"Where?"

"Any more I will not tell until you have saved my people."

"Agreed." Danika stood. "I am returning to our ship. I have to find Sand People clothes before I can enter their village."

Iziz turned, and spoke rapidly to another of his people. "We can supply. We find things, and have since those that left us here. Many is the time that your kind, those that dwell in the sky come here, all they leave we find. That we can we take to use, or to sell. So it has been since the beginning."

"Deliver the clothes to the _Ebon Hawk_." She instructed.

"It will be done."

Tatooine

Danika

We had a lively discussion when we returned to Ebon Hawk. Canderous wanted to go along. I think he liked the odds. Carth was still growling about everything, and didn't even want to talk to me. Bastila would have volunteered, but I still felt too much through the link to trust myself with her.

Canderous came up with the easiest way to get us there. He left the ship, and came back an hour before sunset with three grav-chutes. Used by troops being deployed from a shuttle, they allowed you to drop into an area inaccessible on the ground. We pored over the maps of the region, and I marked a spot. It was about a kilometer from the village over rough terrain. It had the advantage of having an area large enough to land the _Ebon Hawk _if we had to.

I chose to take a minimal team. Mission wanted to go, and the idea of jumping out of the ship was terrifying, but she wanted to go anyway. HK had to go, and I went because I was in charge.

Hk's memory had not returned. He had initially believed that the restraining bolt had been blocking it but admitted that all functions had not been returned.

But from what it could tell me of that additional function, Mission had been right. HK had been designed as an assassin. The fact that such a droid was illegal was secondary. It had a tendency to call living beings 'meatbags' for some reason, but I didn't have the time to find out why.

As Carth lifted off, I worked on the double lightsaber, using a couple of the modulating crystals we had picked up on Yavin. I checked the rest of my gear with care. I didn't take a blaster, but I did take half a dozen grenades just in case. When Carth signaled, we were ready.

I hadn't bothered to mention to Mission that I didn't like grav-chutes either. They had a distressing tendency to fail, and when set for HALO operations, high altitude, low opening as they had to be for this mission, were terrifying in their own right. We would be jumping at three kilometers height, and they would activate at 100 meters. That left you 2900 meters to contemplate your own chances that it would fail, and less than a second to realize that it had before you hit the ground.

No help for it. I stood beside the ramp as it dropped, holding Mission's hand. "Ready?"

"No." She admitted. "But let's go."

I nodded, and we ran down the ramp, launching ourselves into space. I had carried a full sensor pack, and as we fell, I directed our flight, I didn't need to look behind me, because HK had been briefed, and his systems were actually better than the headset I wore. Mission using just low light goggles stayed even with me, watching me instead of the darkness below us. I saw some fires, and angled toward them. I wanted to land as close as possible, but not so close that they would think we were an assault force.

I felt the chute grab, and suddenly I was falling at a brisk walking pace instead of a plummet. I hit the ground, and rolled instinctively. Mission had not been watching me in those last seconds, and her fall was what we called a 'beginner's grav-chute landing fall' or in order of impact, 'toes, knees, nose'. Falling flat with a painful stop. She cursed under her breath as she stood.

We dressed in the Sand People's gear Iziz had delivered, and I got my bearings. A dark shape moved, and HK was at our side.

"The village is there." I pointed.

"Affirmation: There are an estimated 200 of them including children." It reported.

We started off slowly, watching for guards. From what I had heard, there had been no attempts to drop strike forces on them as yet, but night attacks had been common.

Mission caught my arm, shaking her head. "Plasma mine right in front of you." She whispered. She knelt, sliding forward like an inchworm, then began the delicate process of disarming the mine. As we went, I mentally kept track of the placement.

"They didn't place the field correctly." I murmured as she disarmed the ninth mine of the evening.

"You're complaining?" She hissed. The mine slipped from the ground, and she slid it into her pack.

"No. I just expect some competency from my enemies."

We came upon a sentry, and I knocked him out. I didn't want to kill anyone unnecessarily.

The tents were leather stretched over forms made of bones and branches, then rubbed in Bantha fat to make them water tight and resilient. I walked through the village, looking for a larger tent, which would hold the leader. I found the tent but he was not there. I saw a larger fire, and a dozen or more of Sand People were gathered around it.

I motioned for HK to walk ahead, and we followed in his wake. When we reached the fire, I stepped forward, and slowly pulled off the wrappings on my face. They froze, and I could see hands reaching for weapons. I drew my lightsaber. "HK, tell them we are here to talk, not to fight." I knelt, setting it on the ground.

The sound that issued from the droid was a series of grunts and wails. They fondled their weapons, and one or two looked to a huge specimen. He replied.

"Translation: He says you defame his people. Remove the clothing so that if die you must, they will not be damaged."

I motioned, and both Mission and I stripped them off. She left her weapons on the ground as I instructed her.

"You are brave, but stupid." HK translated. "Many of your kind have come, defaming our planet, using machines rather than walking or riding animals. Since you come to talk, we will allow your talk for a time."

"Great chief, your skills are well known, and those who control the town fear you. They send those paid to kill you, they collect Gaffi to prove they have done so. I could have done this as they demanded, but life is precious to me, and war, while sometimes necessary, is not always the only way. I come to you bearing words of life in one hand and death in the other. Which shall be spoken this night between us is up to you."

He nodded. "Let me hear your words of life."

"You attack the people of the settlement. I do not know what has caused your hatred of them, but you are known to be a brave, cunning and fierce warrior, chief of the Truuata. They would not fear you else. I ask if there is a way to end this fighting."

"The ones in the town bring this. They defame our world, ripping the sand from it as if that is what they eat. Taking as their own the relics of those we have defeated in past generations. Our people would move from here to the next oasis to avoid these machines and their riders, but not even we can merely walk into the sands. Such is death even for us. Until there is a way to move, we must fight. They have left us no other option."

"Your words of death are strong. But what does your people need to move in safety? What must you have to use words of life with me rather than words of death?"

He bent, talking with a couple of his advisors. "Water is what we need. Water enough to reach the next oasis at least. That is what would allow us to withdraw."

"Do you know of what are called vaporators?" I asked.

"This word is strange. What is this thing you speak of."

"We need water as well, more than your people need, for we were not born to such a wasteland. The small farms which grow plants in caves use a device called a vaporator to draw the water in the air and make it liquid again to save and use."

"An abomination."

"Such might be true, great chief." I motioned toward the blaster rifle on of them carried. "But are not the weapons of those you fight also abominations?"

"Necessary ones." He growled in return. "Without them we must come as close as an honorable foe to fight them. And the cowards can kill us from the next dune. None who have fought us even to those that left us here in the beginning were as fierce as we. So we have, adapted in some things."

"But could you accept an abomination you control, that will supply water if it will deliver your people to the oasis safely?"

He conferred with his people again. "We have listened to your words of life. They are strong. And what have you to say with words of death?"

"Death awaits us all. Some from nature," my arm swept the desert beyond the fires. "We all carry death as well. In the Gaffi you carry, in your rifles, in the blasters both my friend and some of yours carry." I opened the clothes I had worn, and set out the grenades I had brought. "In the grenades I carry, and my blade." I lifted it, triggering it so they could see it. Then they stiffened as Mission opened her pack and laid the mines we had disarmed in a line. "In the metal death boxes you have sown to trap your enemies."

I waved toward them. "But you do not understand their use. If you wish, I can discover if one of your droids was programmed to place them in a proper manner, where they have the best effect in stopping your enemies, yet are easily gathered later." I looked into the mask the Chieftain wore. "Death will collect all of us sooner or late. This we both know. I only try to keep death away for a moment longer. For me, for those in the town, and for your people."

The chieftain stood. "I have listened to your words of death and life. They are strong in your own heart and beliefs, and resonate among us. It is good that warriors of honor meet in this time of death and life. For only those with honor can speak of such things in full truth and trust.

"It shall be life. Bring us these 'vaporators'. Show us their use. Have your droid teach ours this skill with the death boxes, and we shall see if your way is better." He looked at the mines with distaste. "They are the worst of the abominations your kind use, weapons that do not care what they kill. But your kind doesn't seem to care what dies either so they are the perfect weapon for you.

"When I am sure that you have not used your words of life to betray us, you will be allowed to return."

I picked up my weapons, motioning for Mission to do the same. "May I ask my ship to pick us up?"

He looked at the sky. "If you would leave you must walk. Your flying things are an abomination. I will tell my warriors to avoid the people of the town. But I cannot stop all attacks. There are those among your kind that do not understand the honor of death and life." He dismissed us.

We walked back the way we had come. "We didn't ask about Griff!" Mission said.

"I know, Mission. Wait a little longer." I looked around. "HK, are we being followed?"

"Affirmative: But they are not close enough to hear us."

"Are they close enough to see the ship land?"

"Affirmative."

We walked on. After another hour, HK reported that they were no longer trailing us. The ship came in, and lifted us back to town.


	15. Tatooine: Retrieval, conflict, and recon

Tatooine:

Mission

I thought I'd have trouble sleeping, but I was out the instant my head hit the pillow.

The next morning we went over to the Czerka offices. The protocol officer wasn't there, but a Rodian was busy at the supply kiosk.

"Greeta Holda my name. I run supply section. If you have business with protocol officer-"

"No, it is actually you I came to see." Danika said. "I need some moisture vaporators."

"That not something I usually sell to spacers. You no look like farmers. What you do with them?"

Danika looked around. "I have convinced the Truuata to move, but they need water. The vaporators can supply that, yes?"

"Ah. Appeasement. Company not like that." He hit some keys. "Me, I think it great. We only have one model, the 400 series. Working in pairs they distill 30 liters an hour. Will do?"

"Yes. A pair of them."

Greeta nodded, hitting a button. "Will be delivered here. What else you need?"

"Is there a Bantha for rent?"

"Yes. But not here. Go to main gate, talk with Drooti the Aqualish. He rent."

"Thank you." She handed over her card and paid for them

Riding a Bantha is like riding a very slow speeder. They barely get up to 20 kilometers an hour but they can walk all day at that pace. The village was twenty kilometers away, but it took us five hours to get there thanks to weaving back and forth to avoid the more dangerous terrain. The Sand People stopped us before we got there. Man, those guys were good at hiding. One minute we're going along with nothing in sight, the next there were thirty of them. HK chilled them out, and they escorted us to the village.

Danika unloaded the vaporators, which were small enough that four of them could carry it slung between them. They were a bitch to set up, but once that was done, all you needed to do was start them up, and walk away. With HK translating, she was able to explain it. Each came with a large 500 liter tank, both of which could be slung on either side of one of their banthas, and by running it from when they camped until they were ready to move, they could begin each day with more than 400 liters. While forty liters an hour in that weather is just enough to take care of only six average people, to the Sand People it must have been a mobile oasis. Danika also showed them what buttons to push to reduce the thing to scrap.

Me? I think they'd just find some place far from humans and set up with them still running; after all the power packs were good for over a standard year. I also saw a market for stealing more if they spoke to the Jawas. After all, they'd decided that weapons were usable, even if they were abominations. Why not a free source of water they didn't have to fight for?

She then patiently explained how a minefield was laid, and more importantly, how it was swept. HK had downloaded a lot of data on the mines we had collected, and between him and Canderous, had all of that data set for different terrains and conditions. This was downloaded to the droids the Sand people did keep. Again she showed him how to disarm them permanently.

Again I thought, no fracking way. The droids could either lay a field in a couple of hours or sweep a it by first signaling to deactivate and merely picking them up in minutes, and thanks to Danika having HK download the languages the local natives used, even a kid could tell them, as long as he knew the right phrases.

I could see a brisk market in mines being 'collected' from minefields laid by the locals. Or just watching some gang of corporate thugs set them up at a camp, and use their own frequency to disable a minefield before attacking them.

You ask me, she just made it a lot hotter for the Corporation here. The chief was so happy he gave his Gaffi stick to her.

They didn't want to deal with slaves on the trek, so when Danika asked, they gave the lot to us. Thirty odd Jawas, three humans.

And Griff.

I was still burning about the Chief's comment. When HK asked about the servants, they had enumerated them. When they got to Griff, they said he was worthless for work, and he only lived because he amused the females and children. After all, every village needed an idiot. The chief wanted him out of there quick.

Griff tried to lie the instant he saw us. "You there, I am an official of Czerka Corporation, and they will pay well for my release!"

Before Danika could speak, I stepped around her. "Griff?"

"Who are-" He stopped, and his eyes were hooded. Then he was smiling like he'd only seen me yesterday. "Mission! You got off Taris! Good for you!"

"No thanks to you." I snapped. "You left me there!"

"Hey, Lena said-"

"Can it! I talked to Lena."

"Oh, you did. Well what did you expect her to say? After all it was thanks to her that I was broke when I got here!"

"Sure. Your skifter went out in the middle of a game again?"

"She was ruining my luck! Besides, you were grown up and taking care of yourself-"

"You pile of moldy Bantha droppings! I was twelve!"

"Well that's all water out of a vaporator. Once we get back to town, I have this plan! All I need is a stake-"

"After dumping me two years ago, stealing my share of that last job, running off with Lena, getting yourself captured by Sand People, you want me to stake you?"

"Hey, Mission, what is family for?"

"Well I have a family, Griff, and you aren't part of it! This woman is my family now, and Big Z is my family, my crew is my family. You're just something that happens to share my genes!" I turned away. "Leave before we decide to leave you here!"

"But Mission!" He whined. "I owe the Exchange big time! They'll kill me!'

I turned back toward him. I didn't even know I had drawn my gun until I felt Danika's hand pushing it back down. "He's not worth it, Mission."

I stared at him. My brother, the only flesh and blood I had in the Galaxy. I didn't care if the Exchange killed him. If anyone killed him. Hell the way I felt right then I would have killed him. "Goodbye Griff."

"I'll be at the corporate offices!"

"So what." I whispered as he scampered away.

We got outside, but our Bantha was missing. " HK, where's the Bantha?" Danika asked.

"Specification: The Twi-lek we rescued is on it." HK reported. Sure enough, the thing was moving at a good clip with Griff slapping it trying to get more speed.

Danika sighed. "HK, how fast can you run?"

"Amused reply: Fast enough to chase down a Bantha, Master."

"Then bring it back. If Griff tries to stop you, ignore him unless you are in danger. If you are, disable him, but do not kill him."

"Sadness: You are ruining all my fun, Master." HK replied.

We looked at the people we had rescued. The humans were emaciated and dehydrated. We weren't going to walk these people even the four kilometers or more that we needed to use the ship.

Twenty minutes later, HK strode back in, leading the bantha. He reported that one shot past Griff's head was all he needed to change Griff's mind, and my brother was running as fast as he could toward town. Danika and I struggled to hoist the humans onto the animal. The Jawas were in better shape, but they don't move so fast. With HK there to translate, I had the rest of the day and night to talk with them.

The fund of knowledge they had about desert survival was amazing. I mentioned to them that maybe they should get hold of some of those wrecked sand crawlers and live in them. They had been sort of half-heartedly repairing them enough to run, and selling them back to the Corporation up to then, and the idea of living in them surprised and delighted them. I only hoped they wouldn't start, you know, boosting them.

I think I might have made it harder for the Corp too; I told them about the mines, and how to use droids to collect them, and how vaporators worked...

We stopped at the front gate, and spoke again with Iziz. He was happy about his people, and gave Danika a map for the location of the star map thingy. Then we stopped at the Czerka office where I pointedly ignored Griff as Danika dropped the gaffi stick on the desk. The attacks had fallen off, and the woman was happy as she dialed the creds into our account. Me I just wanted to get back to the ship, take a shower, and wish I had never had a brother.

Tatooine:

Danika

When we got back aboard, I went to the berthing area. Bastila was crouched there, trying to meditate. I knew she was only trying because I couldn't feel the flow of peace I usually did when she was meditating.

"Yes." She almost snarled at me.

"We have the location of the star map. It is in a cave with a Krayt Dragon."

"Then we should leave immediately."

"No, we'll wait until tomorrow."

"Why?" She glared at me.

"Your emotions are pouring over me like a cold shower. Even if you can't meditate, I have to before we go out there and chance being killed." I sighed. "Bastila, maybe we should break this bond before it gets worse."

"But what if the bond is the only thing holding you from falling to the dark side?"

I knelt, and brushed a stray hair off her face. "Bastila, I can feel your pain so deeply it's my pain. I would help but you won't let me. Don't you understand how frustrating that can be? If you were Kalendra, I would have taken you into the tub and massaged all that pain away. But you're not." I stood, walking away. Sasha came running up, hugging me, and I returned it gladly. The girl had become the focus of my off time.

We went together into the cargo hold, and I began to spar with her in hand to hand combat. She was fast, wiry, and willing to hurt her opponent if she had to. All good in martial arts. Then I watched her as she practiced with her training lightsaber against a remote. She had the wiry strength of someone that had a hard life even at her young age. I felt refreshed when we were done. If you have a problem, try concentrating on someone else's problems for a couple of hours. It works wonders. I took a shower with Sasha then meditated, and went to bed.

I found myself in the jungles of home. For once I felt myself alone, and it worried me. Then I heard crying.

I found Bastila standing over a corpse. She was wailing like a child that was inconsolable, then kneeling beside him trying to straighten his limbs, talking to him as if that would make him arise from the dead. "Come on father, it's morning and there is so much we should be doing! There is treasure to find, money to earn..." She touched his face. "Please, if you love me you'll get up!" I watched in horror. The so prim and proper Bastila falling apart before my eyes. She saw, me, and gave a smile that was what you would expect from a week old corpse. "Father, we have a guest! You have to get up!' She started shaking the body repeating 'get up' over and over.

"Bastila, come with me." She ignored me. I touched her and she screamed wordlessly, attacking me with her nails like a Jollo cat.

I finally caught her from behind, holding her against me. She fought, screaming and clawing to return to the body, but I wouldn't let her go. "Bastila, it won't work!" I begged. She finally stopped fighting, merely standing there as I held her. "We will get through this together. All you have to do is trust me."

She started laughing hysterically, trying to push away again.

We ignored each other the next morning.

I decided to take Carth with us. He piloted the land speeder with the same panache he had shown flying the _Ebon Hawk_.

"Bastila, did you ever consider joining the Jedi when Revan went?" He shouted.

"That was over five years ago, Carth. I was still an apprentice then, and my ability with Battle meditation had not yet come to light. Yet even then I had the wisdom to stay instead of fighting."

"Fair enough. But maybe if the Council had backed them, Revan and Malak might not have fallen to the dark side."

"Don't blame everything on the Council! It was your Senate that saw only the threat of the Mandalorians. The Council's wisdom saw beyond that."

"What did they see?" I asked.

"Something was lurking out there in the depths of the force. Something dark and hungry waiting for us to get close enough for it to touch. Something that devoured Revan and Malak along with almost all of those Jedi that had gone with them. If the Council had thrown their weight behind that stupid war how many more might have fallen before we knew what we faced?"

"So the Council decided that we should have done nothing? Just let the Mandalorians roll right over us?"

"The Republic has survived worse, Carth."

"Sure. If they didn't mind becoming workers under Mandalorians who weren't even worthy of the name. Their kids learning Mandalorian instead-"

"If Revan and Malak had not gone, the order would be at full strength rather than the tattered remnants that remain!"

I was starting to wish I had come by myself.

We dropped over the hill, and I saw a speeder already there. A Twi-lek was standing there, looking into the cave.

It could have doubled as a hanger for the Ebon Hawk from the opening. We stopped beside his speeder, and he waved toward us.

Komad Fortuna." He introduced himself. "I don't know if you have heard of me-"

"I have." I said. You made three trips to my home world of Deralia." I said.

"Yes. Here I hunt game worthy of the name once again." He waved toward the entrance. "Not only a Krayt Dragon, but one twice the size of the one my grandfather killed here a century ago!" He handed me his electro binoculars. I couldn't see anything, and I said so. "Ah, believe me. Such a beast comes only once in a lifetime!"

He went to his vehicle, and began setting up, of all things, a Mandalorian design crew operated heavy blaster almost twice the size of the one Canderous carried. It was an anti-vehicle weapon; or carried by a snub fighter. And here he was, blithely setting it up to use as a hunting rifle! Komad switched on the small gravity generator, and moved it around. "My only worry is that this toy of mine will only irritate it unless I can get a shot at it's underbelly. The scales of the average Krayt Dragon are thick enough to turn a regular blaster rifle. But I have a plan. For it to work, however, I have decided I need help."

"Our help?"

"Oh, no. I had just come up here today to lay out my plan. I am planning on digging a covered firing pit down there. The chosen prey of the Dragon is Bantha and the occasional stupid hunter. As you can see, I didn't bring either with me." He waved toward a distant herd. "However if we could entice them over here; and if the pit were dug of course, I could take him today."

It might just work; they used a similar method back home for some of the larger animals, and a gun just as big.

"But why kill it?" Bastila asked. Komad gave her a surprised look.

"Ah, a conservationist like that Dayso Cooh back in the town. Well I have the same answer for you that I had for him. The reason so many of the animals here are huge is because their life cycles are so long. A Bantha lives to over two standard centuries, and this beast by my estimates has been alive almost a thousand years. Think of something that has grown to the size of a ship, that eats perhaps five tons in a meal now. When it was much smaller a Bantha colt would have been enough.

"But a full grown Bantha is barely large enough even for a single meal now. Krayt Dragons do not die, you see. They merely grow larger until they can no longer eat enough to survive. Soon it will grow large enough that it cannot eat enough Bantha to stay alive. Then it will have to find food, and Anchorhead is what, forty kilometers away? It can out run a Bantha and if it comes to Anchorhead, will devastate the population. When that happens, no one will be alive to complain that I should have killed it."

That made sense. "I understand."

"Danika!" I spun, and Carth was pointing toward the horizon beyond which lay Anchorhead. Three speeders were escorting a shuttle, and a pair of swoop bikes paced them.

"Hunters?" I asked.

Fortuna shook his head. "If they were, they wouldn't have brought that shuttle. The sound stampedes banthas, and makes the dragon angry."

I swept the vehicles, and hissed. "Carth, the second speeder." He took the electro binoculars. He froze, then lowered them slowly. "Calo Nord."

"Who?" Bastila asked.

"Supposedly the best bounty hunter in the Galaxy." Carth said. "I don't think it is chance that he's coming here. The Sith must have hired him."

We had better hide." I looked around. "Komad, how close can we get to the cavern without disturbing the beast?"

"It is resting during the hot part of the day." He waved toward the blistering suns. "For a few more hours, we could hide right in the mouth of it."

"Let's go." I motioned.

"We could..." Komad motioned toward his 'hunting rifle'.

"No time. Follow us."

Without any further discussion we all sprinted toward the cave. There was a pair of berms made by the beast hollowing out the inside by shoving the soil out with it's paws, with a flattened area between them. They were high enough that we could kneel and fire at the approaching vehicles. That is if anyone had a long-gun. However they were narrow, so I ended up hiding behind one with Komad, Bastila and Carth behind the other.

The shuttle landed behind our land speeders, and the speeders with it settled down beside it. The swoops kept a circling pattern to watch for attempts by our party to break out into the desert. After a few minutes there were about thirty of them, armed with rifles. They looked at the gun, but ignored it beyond that.

Nord climbed out of the speeder, and took a microphone. His voice blasted. "We know you're there, Bastila. Your friends are bought and paid for, but you're worth more alive. Me, I don't care either way. But if you want to live, I would suggest you stand up and come here."

"Well, it's nice to know we're not important." I said loud enough for Carth to hear.

"I never was that valuable before." Carth replied. "What's the plan?"

I looked at the hundred or so meters between us as the mercenaries formed into a line. I might be able to run that distance, deflecting blaster bolts all the way; Bastila might. But both Komad and Carth were going to die if we tried that. I could see at least four sniper rifles. They could kill us from where they stood, and we could do nothing to strike back. I looked back. "Komad, what would happen if we ran in there?" I asked, motioning toward the cave.

"You are mad!" He said. Then realized that he had almost shouted, and looked at the cave in alarm. He lowered his voice. "If we go in there, we are a meal that has been delivered, nothing more."

"I want you to consider our options." I jerked my head toward Calo's men. "They will definitely kill us. But the beast only might; correct?"

He looked at the men, then at the cave, then gulped. "Yes there is that. Ready?"

"Are you ready, Carth?"

"We're all going to die!" Then he grinned manically. "After you!"

I laughed, leaping to my feet, facing Nord's men. I deflected a bolt, then another as the snipers took us under fire. Bastila had stood as I did, and while I covered Komad, she covered Carth in that mad scramble.

"All right, have it your way!" Nord's voice bellowed. "Bikes, educate them!"

The bikes swooped down, and just as I reached the entrance, they fired. I deflected their fire madly, and grinned as one of the bolts hit one of the distant land speeders and caused it to explode. Then we were out of sight. Carth and Bastila scrambled up the slope on their side, and Komad was doing the same on ours, so I shut down my lightsaber. I ducked, diving to the side as one of the swoops dropped low enough to fire right into the cave. I heard bolts hitting, sand screeching as it crystallized into glass, stone shattering. And among them a drumfire of hits that sounded, meaty.

I lay on the sand floor, and right before me was a rough curved wall. Then an eye a meter across opened in that wall. I froze, my eyes tracking down to the left, where only part of that huge body was visible. Unable to stop myself, my eyes followed the other way, down a head and snout large enough to park one of those land speeders on. The vertical pupil widened, and I knew it saw me for the first time. Then it lifted that massive head as it still looked at me, the neck a column large enough to support a roof on.

Calo Nord saved us that day. One of the bikes made another firing run, and I saw bolts smack into the beast's nose like pebbles hitting a ship. It flinched, then turned its attention on the opening. Behind us, Nord and his men had charged, firing manically at the cave. They were almost to the berm when the beast started forward.

I rolled up into a ball, and pure chance kept it from stepping on me as it charged. I stood to witness the most one-sided battle I have ever seen.

The mercenaries had charged expecting to find only four people. Instead they suddenly faced over one hundred tons of angry and hungry dragon. They were brave; I'll give them that. They began firing in a pattern that would have badly damaged the _Ebon Hawk_. Against the dragon it was rain falling on a roof. This wasn't some frail creation of man. It was alive, a thousand years old, and mad as hell.

The dragon snapped up one man, pinning another as it ripped off his arm and head, smashing another with his tail, then it was through them, and only Calo Nord stood between it and the desert. One of the swoops dropped down firing, and the dragon smashed it to the ground with his forepaw, the explosion scything through the men on the ground. It turned and ran toward Calo Nord. He srpinted back, trying to turn the gun Komad had left, but without the generator active, it was too heavy for a man to move. He turned back, death approaching, and I saw him reach for a grenade. he activated it as the tongue wrapped around him. The head came back, the jaws closed on him, then it swallowed.

The beast turned to come back, and an instant later the thermal detonator went off. The huge neck bulged, then exploded outward. The blast swept us off our feet. When I staggered back up, the only thing I heard was the wailing of a badly wounded man. Carth came up beside me, and we walked out into the hell ground. I didn't know how many had survived, though all of the vehicles were gone. We could see the lone swoop and the shuttle passing over the distant dunes, and nothing but shredded people.

We looked at each other in amazement. Behind us Komad Fortuna came out, looking at the carnage. Then he flicked on his wrist com. He spoke, then came up beside us, looking at the dead dragon.

"A pity." He said.

"Yes, it was a beautiful beast."

"No not that." He looked at me askance. "The story I could have told at the Hunter's club! Instead?" He took a heroic stance, waving toward an invisible audience. "There I was, facing a dragon twice the size of any that had ever been seen. I wasn't sure my Heavy blaster rifle would kill it!. But before I could fire, three dozen mercenaries led by the bounty hunter Calo Nord trapped us against the beast's lair!"

I felt an almost irresistible urge to giggle, turning away, but he continued.

"There we were, trapped between the gaping jaws of hell and irate men, and our only hope was to run in, beard the beast in it's den, or die at the hands of our attackers. We fled into the cave, and the men, not knowing what thehy faced, charged after us!"

I held my sides, trying to keep from laughing.

"Then the beast ignoring us, entered the fray. Imagine it! Men firing weapons with no more affect than snowballs as I dived for cover!"

"Please, stop." I said in a strangled whisper.

"Then Calo Nord was eaten and a thermal detonator he had activated gave it a case of terminal indigestion!" He sighed. "Leaving us to pick up the pieces of that noble creature!"

I fell to my knees, and roared with laughter. I was alive, Calo was dead, and the relief was so great I couldn't hold it in. Fortuna looked at me quizzically, which caused me to laugh even harder.

Finally the laughter died. I stood, looking around.

Inside the cave, Bastila was kneeling by a huddled form of partially digested bone and flesh, and my good humor vanished. I walked in, standing over her. She held a holocron, and she rocked back and forth, silent tears streaming down her face. No matter what your intellect, or nature, people always lie to themselves about death. They act as if the other person has merely moved to another place. Eventually you knew you wolud turn a corner and there they are.

This is the moment when you realize someone is finally dead. The body before you, the first shovel of dirt hitting the coffin, the flames embracing the corpse. The person you hoped might stand up again is gone forever, and all that remains is the grief. I knelt, and wordlessly enfolded her in my arms from behind. She sobbed, and I could hear stumbling words in it.

"I wouldn't even speak to him the last time I saw him. I was hurt that he would send me away, and he tried to make me understand. But I wouldn't listen. When the Jedi came for me I turned my back on him, and boarded the ship angry and hurt, and I never knew if he waved to me, or even wanted to say goodbye." She held up the Holocron, and I saw the scene she had described as her father had seen it. A small girl with pigtails walking stiff-backed away from him. He was waving, shouting, trying to get her to turn, to wave, anything. His shoulders slumping as the ship lifted, Helena holding him as he cried.

"Maybe she'll forgive us later." Helena said. Whether Bastila realized it or not, Helena did not appear overjoyed by her departure.

She spun in my arms, and clung to me desperately. I merely held her, lending her my strength as she cried.

"Danika is this the Star Map?" Carth asked. I glared at him until he left us alone. All I could feel was Bastila's misery.

Tatooine

Bastila

The last of the sand settled over my father's grave. Danika smoothed it out, then took a small trinket from his pack and imbedded it into the soil. She used her lightsaber with precision, melting the sand around and over the grave into a solid piece of glass with only that trinket, a picture of me on his shoulders, both grinning, as a marker. She had moved his remains from the cave, and he now lay on the sandstone bluff overlooking the lair. I felt he would have loved the view.

She held out her hand, and I took it, holding desperately.

The Twi-lek hunter came over, holding two large balls in his hand. "To the victor's go the spoils." He said. He took Danika's free hand, and set the Krayt Pearl in it. The largest Krayt pearl ever on display was as big around as an egg you might have for breakfast. These were easily four times that size. "I have a another speeder coming. If you wish I can give you a lift back to Anchorhead."

"That would be appreciated." Danika said. She led me by the hand back into the cave. Carth was standing by the pintel, keeping clear. Danika released my hand, and walked over to it. At her approach, the arms dropped then the ball of material leaped into the air to reveal the star map. She downloaded it, then returned to my side.

We walked back out into the sun, and both looked up at where father rested at last. "Are you feeling better?" She asked gently.

I looked at the grave, then at her. "Yes. A great weight has lifted. Thank you."

She looked toward Carth. He looked like a puppy expecting to be kicked. She hugged me, then took my hand again and walked toward Carth.

"What is on your mind, Carth?"

"I haven't been much help have I?" He asked softly.

Danika let me go, then walked over to stand in front of him, arms crossed. "If I were still a sergeant, I would have bounced you out of my squad so fast, you wouldn't have needed jets. With an efficiency report that would have had you assigned as a cook's helper."

His shoulders slumped. "I'm sorry. You didn't deserve any of the crap I've given you. I just..." He shrugged. "Maybe I'm just too pig headed to change."

"You're changing right now."

"That's because instead of helping you, I've made you carry the entire mission on your back. When you've been pushing forward, I've been opinionated, arrogant, irritating-"

"Let's not forget mistrustful, paranoid, and a general pain in the ass."

"You're right." He grinned. "Can I start over?" He snapped to attention. "Carth Onasi reporting for duty, Ma'am!"

I smiled as Danika returned the salute. "Very good, Mister Onasi."

The speeder arrived, and our trip back to Anchorhead was quiet, but more comfortable.

We walked to the Cantina. Part of me wanted to run, but Danika kept moving forward. There was nothing for it. Either I would have to face mother this one last time, or Danika would never let me hear the end of it.

It looked like she hadn't even left. The glass in front of her was half full, and she drained it as we approached.

"Back already? Have you even bothered to look for your father's body yet?"

I felt myself stiffening. I wanted to be just a normal woman without the responsibilities being a Jedi imposed. I wanted to rip her hair out, slash her face with my nails. Make her feel the pain I suffered. "We have retrieved the holocron, and buried my father." I replied levelly. "I'm just not sure I want to give it to you."

She stiffened, looking at the glass the waitress had brought. "So you would deny me even that? The last chance to see his face?"

"I never denied you anything, Mother." I snapped. "You may think that the veil of time hides all, but I remember very well what it was like before I went to the Order. You were the one pushing father into treasure hunt after treasure hunt. You loved living with the wealth he had gained, but I remember the fights!

"You were the one that pushed him into sending me away, and now all I have to remember him by is the memories of a five-year-old, and this holocron!"

She glared at me. "Foolish girl Your memory isn't very sharp after all! That isn't-"

"Enough mother! I don't wish to fight with you any longer, and now that Father is dead, there is nothing more we share. It is time we parted ways for the very last time. For our own good this ends today."

"Bastila-" Danika began.

"What do you know of her?" I rasped, turning on her. "She always wheedled what she wanted out of father and it finally killed him!"

Danika took the glass from Helena, and held it out. "Smell it."

"What?"

She shoved it in my face. "Use those keen Jedi senses, and tell me what this is made of!"

I took it angrily. The smell was reminiscent of... I looked at my mother. Kolto laced wine? "Kolto? Are you sick, mother?"

"I am not sick." Helena looked at the glass. "I'm dying." She took the glass from my hand, and sipped. " Istumadic Syndrome."

I felt as if I had been punched in the gut yet again. Then my anger resurged. "I find it difficult to believe anything you say, mother."

"It seems to me you've already made up your mind." Danika said softly.

I sighed. "You're right. I cannot claim to be a Jedi if I am unable to even listen to my mother!" I bowed my head. "I am sorry, mother."

She looked away, then back at me, tears in her eyes. "I was always hard on you. I wasn't very good as a mother, I know. Now... I wish I could take back every harsh word.

"Your father loved you so much, Bastila. He saw you becoming more like him every day, and wanted to take you on his hunts, but I wouldn't let him. They were too dangerous, and he would have died inside if you had been hurt. I accepted your anger at me because you thought I was coming between you."

"Treasure hunting can be dangerous." Danika murmured.

"I tried to keep him from the more dangerous ones, but he enjoyed the thrill too much. It was a reckless life we led, and I wanted something better for you."

"So that is why you gave me to the order?"

"When the Jedi met you, witnessed your skills, I knew it was the best for you. What do I have to show for twenty odd years of running after those rainbows?" She waved at the bar. "I only have this refuge because the barkeep was an old friend your father saved before you were born! I won't even be able to pay to be buried! We spent every credit as soon as it came in, and always went looking for more.

"If I hadn't gotten sick, maybe we would have had something to show for it. When I was diagnosed three years ago, we tried to contact you, but never got an answer. Treatment is hideously expensive, and could only slow it, and your father became desperate. He wanted to hold onto something, even if he couldn't be with you. So he went on more and more dangerous hunts, until we came here. He didn't listen to me, ignored the dread I felt. Then... He didn't come back. I had begged him for these last years to just let me go, but he was always stubborn, just like you."

"I never received your message, mother." I said softly. I took out the holocron, setting it on the table. She looked at it, then slid it back to me.

"You keep it, Bastila. You didn't had the years with him that I did. This talk, being with you was what I really needed."

"I'm glad we talked mother."

"Well." Helena scrubbed the tears from her face. "You said you had important business, and you were never one to mince words. Just, be careful please." She looked at Danika. "You there, take care of my daughter, will you? She's all I have left in the world."

"We will watch over each other." Danika replied.

"That is what she always needed. Someone close to her that cares about her."

"Where will you go, mother?"

"It doesn't matter, dear. Don't worry about me when there is a galaxy to save!"

I dug in my pouch, and I handed her a pile of coins. "I don't have much. The order frowns on it. But this is enough to get to Coruscant. Go there, find a doctor." She looked at the coins, then set the Krayt Pearl atop them.

"I told you what I have. There is no cure. All a doctor can do is keep me alive for a time."

"I understand that. But you and I have a lot of catching up to do. I refuse to let this chance for a true reconciliation to pass. Once my mission is completed, I will come and see you. So please, take the money. Sell the pearl, or keep it as a memento of father's last hunt."

She looked at the coins, at the pearl. "All right. I will do as you say. Now go do what you have to do my daughter. Make us proud."

I found myself hugging her, and we were both crying.

Danika

As we walked back toward the ship, I watched her. I could feel the pain easing, as if pus was draining from an infected wound.

"Feeling better?"

"Yes. She smiled sadly. "That brought me more peace than I had anticipated. Thank you for urging me to meet with her this time. With all my training I would have thought that facing this would be easier. I still have much to learn." She walked silently, then suddenly spoke again. "I have been trying to find a way to say this for some time now, but I suppose I should just come right out with it.

"I have grown to depend on you more and more. Not just because of the mission, but for my own well being. I am glad you're with us."

"A compliment, from you?" I joked.

She looked at me askance. "Yes. Is that so surprising?"

"Well, yes, actually."

She shook her head. "Why must you make this so difficult for me? Can't you accept a simple compliment?"

"Sure, fine, thanks for your vote of confidence."

"I know my manner is taciturn. I know you are probably getting bored with my lectures on the danger of the dark side and everything else. I spent all my years of training with masters constantly hounding me to do better, to excel. I heard so often about how gifted I was how important I was that I grew sick of it. I used to vow to myself that when I became a Jedi, I would never become so stodgy and self-absorbed that I resembled those masters." She smiled. "It's funny really. The first time I have a Jedi I am training, I become just like them."

"You're not stodgy and self-absorbed."

She smiled. "It's kind of you to say so, but I know what and who I am. By controlling my emotions, by assuring that nothing got past my shell, I was safe from harm. By keeping people at arms length I could never be hurt. Even those I am supposed to train and watch over, like you. When you needed my support, I find that you are my crutch instead.

"But I see it is time I changed. You don't need lectures, and you deserve to know how much I respect your abilities, and admire you. I just thought you deserved to be told by me."

"Thanks."

Bastila shook herself. "Well, that wasn't so hard, was it? Thanks to you, I feel so much better."

We reached the ship, and I hugged the little missile named Sasha. Carth and Bastila assumed their stations, and we set course for Kashyyyk.

Juhani was sitting in the mess hall drinking what I recognized as meat tea. "How are you holding up, Juhani?"

"Better." She pushed the mug about. "I was thinking of the Jedi I saw back home. All those years ago." She shook her head. "They were all so, invigorating."

"Invigorating?"

"So alive and full of their zeal and purpose. They were shining knights." She smiled. "In retrospect I think it is kind of tragic."

"Tragic?"

"They were only on my world to use it as a jumping off point to attack the Mandalorians at Onderon. Many of the Jedi I had seen and admired then were slaughtered in the coming years. But to us, they were invincible.

"They spoke so highly of Revan, as if her very presence would make everything work. They swept inequities away, forcing the ruling classes to make concession. They were gods that came from the skies, to make everything better."

"The Jedi are not gods."

"I know that. I was merely using poetic license! But those Jedi made more changes in the months they were there than a century had. They were enthralling. People wanted to merely touch them, as if that contact would rub some of their honor and magic off on the one who succeeded. But the peace they had brought did not last long."

"What happened?"

"They left. The ruling classes wanted things to return to normal, and people who finally knew there was a better life refused to bow down. There was another civil war, and the winners ignored all of what they had learned from the Jedi. They became the new rulers, and were just as oppressive as those they replaced. We non-humans bore the brunt of their anger in both administrations."

"All races have intolerance, Juhani."

"Yes. But Humans are the only race that has spread in such numbers. That makes their racial bigotry seem more pervasive. They at least are consistent in their hatreds. They took it out on us because the ones they hated were either not there or long dead. But those on the bottom, they had to bear this anger. They are never among those the Republic Senate hears!" She hissed, and looked away. "I am sorry, I have given into my anger again."

"Fight it, Juhani. Don't let it control you."

"The very reason it bothers me is that I feel it still! It has influence, and will lead me to the dark side again if I am not careful." She looked at me, then down. "I thank you for your support. I lash out at you, yet you do not strike back at me. I am humbled by your control."

"I am here if you need me, Juhani."

"I thank you." She took her cup, returning to the medical compartment she had made her own.

I sipped, closing my eyes. "You wanted to ask something?" I looked over at Bastila where she stood, witnessing the little chat.

"Am I always so transparent?" She asked. Then she shrugged. "I shouldn't be surprised as strong as this bond is. May I ask you a question?"

"Do I have a choice?"

She waved, exasperated. "I wasn't even going to mention it, but you did ask. Now that you have brought it up, I think I shouldn't have waited this long. In our time together, I have seen you blossom into a true servant of the light. You seem to have ingested the Jedi code and ideals with you're mother's milk. You hold to the ideals with almost no training at all.

"I see you supporting Juhani, Mission, Carth, even me as if that was your lot in life. Yet you do this so easily. For me taking a role such as yours has always been wearing. My own emotions interfere too much. Don't you find it difficult at times? Or is it just a facade for those that see you?"

"When I was a soldier, I discovered that giving vent to your emotions kills more often that not." I said. "It is a struggle, but one I am used to."

"That is good to hear. I have always found the Jedi path of detachment is a hard road to walk. It is nice to know that I am not alone in that. I have always been too quick to anger, too quick to take sides even when I don't fully understand them. My instructors constantly berated me when I was younger.

"Since this new war started, I always pictured facing Revan and since she is no more Malak in a final battle to end it all. I could use all this anger I feel to destroy him and end the suffering and destruction. Even though I know that I would end just as bad as they if I did so."

"It seems we both have our own demons to face."

"Do we?" She looked at me oddly. "Part of me tells me that it would be a small price to pay for peace to vent my baser emotions, even if they had to kill me afterward." She shook her head, eyes haunted. "I picture myself acting as Malak has, and find the very idea frightening. That I could fall to evil such as his, to destroy only because it is all I have left. I can't fathom it. It is impossible! But..." She looked away. "I shouldn't even be asking you this. To suggest to you that the Jedi teachings might be wrong."

"Bastila-"

"No. They are the foolish thoughts of a vain mind. Forget I said anything." She passed me almost at a run.


	16. Kashyyyk: Problems upon arrival

Enroute to Kashyyyk

Danika

Carth came out of the cockpit to grab a bite. I was sitting with Sasha, showing her how to play a game. I saw his face fall, and he started to turn.

"Maybe we need to talk." I said.

He sighed. "Don't you ever give up?"

"When I'm dead." I said. He laughed sadly at that.

"You're thinking about Saul."

"Hey, don't tell me we're bonded now too! I don't think I could handle Bastila's thoughts."

"You show a lot of your emotions in the way you stand. When you remember Saul, your right hand clenches. Like you have a gun in your hand."

"You're right." He admitted.

"Why is he your personal vendetta?"

"He betrayed the Republic, slaughtered the people of my home world Telos. Is there anything more he needs to have done?"

"Carth, I have seen the type of anger you speak of. Half the people in my unit at Zanebra were like that. But yours is an obsession. There is more to this than you have said up to now."

"I'm sure you don't want to hear this."

"I asked."

"Yeah, right." He poured a cup of ale from the cooler. "When Saul went over to the enemy, he tried to talk me into joining him like I told you. The task force we were part of was on maneuvers. After we talked, Saul took his ship out supposedly on a solo recon. When he didn't come back we looked for him. Then we got the call from Telos. Saul's ship was there blasting the colony apart. They had brought a Sith fleet with them.

"We came out of hyper, and as we approached, we could see his bombers pasting the ground. The entire orbital infrastructure was already gone. Our fighters dived in and he withdrew.

"Millions had died already, and the worst was to follow. They'd blown every dam and dumped toxins in the water. I was allowed to go down because my family lived there. Or did before the attack. My wife Morgana, and my son Dustil. My shuttle landed in the colony center and I ran all the way to my house. It was a shattered hole in the ground. My wife was torn apart by shrapnel, and I held her," He put out his arms as if holding a child. "I held her and screamed for the med techs to come. But she died in my arms."

"I'm sorry. I didn't know."

"How could you considering I've never told anyone this? I spent the rest of the time the relief teams were there trying to find Dustil. There were always rumors, that he had been here or there, even that he had been taken when the Sith troops had occupied the main city for a time. But I never found him, or what happened to him. Finally I had to go back on duty.

"Then the years passed. I heard less and less, and finally I gave up. I can still see him. He'd be what, seventeen now? But he's dead somewhere, lying in an unmarked grave if they even bothered to bury him. Saul has so much to answer for.

"I know killing Saul won't bring her back, or give me back my son. I won't feel any better when he's dead. It's just something I have to do. I am going to pay him back for all of the suffering he's caused. It's all I have left to my life."

I hugged Sasha. She understood enough to know that Carth needed some sympathy. She slipped from my lap, walking over, and climbed into his lap. For a moment, he wasn't sure what to do. Then she hugged him, and he found himself hugging her back.

"I can almost see you and her holding Dustil." I said. "What was she like?"

"My wife? She was courageous, stubborn, more stubborn than you are sometimes. I never could talk her out of anything she set her mind to." He blew on Sasha's head, then buried his chin in her hair. "She hated it when I re-upped. I had decided to ask my Commanding officer to let me resign, but... Telos got attacked, and the new war had begun."

"Anything at all on Dustil?"

"I've scanned every report from the relief efforts. After a while though I stopped. I couldn't go on knowing that he might be there, alive trapped in an orphanage or something. I thought that maybe if I stopped looking, I'd hear that much faster."

He sat there until Sasha went to sleep in his lap. I left him watching her sleep.

The next days were peaceful. Sasha gained more strength in the Force. She became more relaxed with the crew, even taking to exercising with Canderous watching. He pretended to ignore her, but when she did an exercise wrong, he would correct her. For such a huge and terrifying man, he was gentle. Almost as if she were his daughter.

One evening after dinner I spoke with Juhani. The more time we spent together on the ship, the more relaxed she became as well.

"I wanted to thank you again." She looked down shyly. I have been thinking of our mission, of what we face. I am grateful and honored to be a part of this."

"Juhani, we needed someone like you on this mission."

"Like me." Her voice tightened.

"The Cathar are renowned for being great hunters, and fierce warriors. If we must fight, I cannot think of anyone I would rather have at my side."

She relaxed. "I have never felt such unbiased acceptance from anyone. It is, curious to me. We Cathar do not make friends easily. In our language there are only four words that mean friend, but over fifty that mean stranger or enemy. Those that might claim to be friends tend to drift away from us. They cannot accept our way of looking at the world, at life. Even on Dantooine among the Jedi I remained alone. Not ostracized, or rebuked, just... different."

"Tell me more of your people." I asked.

"You know so much already! What can I tell you that you do not?"

"What I know of your people I learned from books, from other people's opinions. One of my officers always complained that we didn't have Cathar in our unit. He said a Cathar warrior was worth ten of us sometimes."

She shrugged. "Truth to be told, I spent almost my entire life in the Republic, away from my people. I remember little beyond the stories of my parents. I never saw another Cathar beyond them. We are not what you would call a diplomatic people. We do not deal well with groups. This," She waved around the ship. "Being part of something larger than a family, this is different.

"It is new to me. I feel warm, accepted. You make it so. You are the Clan mother of our tribe aboard this ship. You direct, and those among us do as told. I have needed someone like you in my life for a long time."

"I'm not the leader!" I laughed, embarrassed by her words. "I keep picturing myself running behind all of you shouting, 'but I'm in charge'!"

She laughed the coughing grunt of the Cathar. "I can almost see what you describe."

"Whoever is in charge, we have to work together. This is something we will succeed in or fail in because we don't cooperate."

"That is my point." She said solemnly. "I find it difficult to explain. This is so different from what my life was like before. Thank you for accepting me. You have accepted, and the others follow your lead in this as well."

Canderous and Carth continued their war stories sometimes. I was asked, but I hadn't seen a tithe of the combat that even Carth had seen. I listened as Canderous would describe a raid where they went into a cometary ring in hard suits, only to discover an alien ship frozen within it's head. Of Carth talking of maneuvering a scout ship through an asteroid field at full throttle being chased by a dozen Mandalorian fighters.

Even when they spoke of the same battles, when they themselves had been trying to kill the other, the acrimony of their first discussions was absent.

"Maybe I should tell of the more recent war." Canderous said one evening.

"When Revan and Malak fought you?" I asked.

"No, before that. We started conquering planets along the rim. We did it quietly, because the Republic wasn't even paying attention. Finally we had taken everything we could outside, and the Republic still ignored us."

"Try working inside our system." Carth demurred. "Any idiot knew it was coming, but the Senate just argued about what to do."

"The weakness of democracy. Finally we hit along three axes of advance in adjacent sectors. If anyone fought, we obliterated them. The worst was the Republic's strategies. We found planets with minimal weapons, and force field shields! You have to understand that we don't defend anything we can't support.

"If we had to build a depot on a planet, but didn't have fleet units in support we didn't even shield them! We always built such bases away from the civilians because if we were attacking, we wouldn't worry about their casualties. Our workers knew this, and also knew they weren't to blame if they ended up captured.

"But the Republic! Their cowardly tactics caused untold suffering."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Shielding cities. Putting their bases in the hearts of cities! Hiding behind their civilian populations as if that would deter us!"

"Again, it's the system." Carth admitted. "The civilians remembered the Sith wars, and the Sith would have bombed the cities or used them as hostages." He waved toward to outside world in general. "The people wanted to be protected."

"So you put shields over places you can't support, and we assumed there must be something important to defend." Canderous agreed. "Why do you think we attacked them? Do you know how many worlds were smashed in the first years because we thought they had something of value or worth fighting for? If we had to destroy the city to defeat the shields we did. It was as simple as that. Necessary force to beat the opposition we thought was there."

"You could have found another way." I said.

"We did after a while. But we still had to smash some of those cities because the Republic wouldn't come out of them and fight like men! There was little honor in killing them like pests in the _Cahval_. But some of them were honorable and brave. We were honored to face them. Especially later."

"Later?"

"When Revan began to lead them. But that is for another time."

"What do you know of Revan and Malak?" I asked Carth one evening when he was on watch.

"I can't believe that I thought they were going to be our saviors." He shook his head. "I used to think that they were the best humanity had to offer. Now all I want is to put a blaster to their heads. Although it's only Malak now, isn't it? Turned on his own master and killed her. Typical of the Sith mentality. Not that she didn't deserve it."

"You knew them personally?"

"No. I don't think anyone really knows a Jedi personally. At first they were what we needed. They were heroes. They saved the Republic from the Mandalorians. They turned a losing war into a winning one just by being there.

"We in the fleet didn't see much of the Jedi. I only met Malak once and he impressed me. I guess that shows how you can't know what a person will be like until it is too late."

"Do you know why they turned to the dark side?"

"I don't think anyone does. Revan was always going on about how the Republic was sometimes its own worst enemy, from what I heard from Saul. The Senate has so little authority that slavery abounds, even though it is illegal. Commerce ruins planets and doesn't care about the aftermath. The Corporations like Czerka are so widespread and powerful that there's no way to punish them. The Senators can debate all they want, and it still occurs because 'every planet is a separate entity with it's own rules and rights' which means that if they want to fight a war, hey, go ahead." He had quoted the 1st codicil of the Republic constitution sarcastically. From what I have seen, it wasn't far from the truth.

"But she was right, wasn't she?"

"Yeah, but where does the line between freedom and security lie? If the Republic had a full time military beyond the peacetime fleet, where would the money for it come from? Money has to come from somewhere, and taxes would drive the citizens to rebel. This isn't much," He waved at the Ebon Hawk. "But it costs a bundle in the long run.

"Besides, how can you say she was right?" He looked at me askance. "They won the war, marched off supposedly to find the 'phantom fleet' as it was called, then came back. When they left they were Jedi. Now?" He shrugged. "What are they beyond being the enemy?"

"How did they get away with that? Taking a third of the fleet on a wild goose chase?"

"They were heroes. Every hero in legend has gone the extra kilometer to make sure his or her people were safe. If I had been on one of their ships when they left I would have charged into hell with a cheer. This time, they went too far.

"When they came back, they had a lot of alien ships in designs we had never seen before. Not big ones mind you. Frigates, corvettes, and those snub fighters you've seen. The bigger ships aren't even that heavily armed or fast. If it were one on one the _Ebon Hawk _can outrun even the largest of those ships and outgun almost all of them. But there are a lot of them and every year there are more as our forces dwindle and theirs gets bigger.

"As for getting away with it, Revan is no longer a problem is she? We would have rehabilitated her. Malak just killed her. The dark side is it's own worst enemy."

"Why do you say that?"

"You've seen how things are run on some planets. Take Taris for example. I always thought all the maundering about the dark side was just a fancy way to explain what we see every day. Corruption, greed, abuse. All of the stupid and horrible things people inflict on themselves every day. But when it comes to the Jedi..." He checked the controls. "I think for them it's much worse. That maybe Bastila was right. That the dark side is this predator sitting in the shadows, waiting for an unsuspecting Jedi to come close enough for it to pounce.

"Now that I have seen what it could do to Malak and Revan, I can see you doing something like that. Like the flip side of a coin. You're brave, intelligent, and caring. Haven't you pictured seeing a mirror image of yourself doing everything bad instead? It's not just you. Bastila is... Intense. Focused. I may not know what the Force is, but I can almost see her turning to evil."

"Do we have so little trust from you still?"

"No! I'm sorry, I might sound like that, but it's like the old saying 'with great power you have great responsibility'. For me, all I have to do to turn to the dark side is stop caring about everyone. But for you and her, it's like the difference between stepping off a curb, and stepping off the Senate Tower on Coruscant. Both will drop you to the ground, but only one is spectacular."

I imagined what he described. "I can imagine."

"I can't even dream of knowing what you must be going through every day. Bastila is always worried and I can see that neither of you is really ready for this. I'm just concerned about what might come."

"I didn't know you cared." I chided.

"It's not that! It's... Well... I just don't want to see you kids get hurt is all."

"Thanks father."

"Stop that!" He protested. We laughed together.

Bastila avoided me. It was as if she had made a pass at me, and been embarrassed by my incomprehension. Finally I cornered her. "Our last conversation bothered me." I said.

"Yes, I did end that rather abruptly." She admitted. "The problem was all on my side. Perhaps a Master could have couched my questions better, without sounding so confused. I should never have brought it up, especially with you."

"Why am I different?"

She hesitated. "Part of my mission with you was to be a guide, a rock for you to stand on when the dark side tried to rise within you. But I feel I have failed in that task. I know now that I was not the one that should have been guiding you. I am no master. If it were possible, I would have us return to Dantooine and forswear this mission until you were ready."

"Why do you say that?"

"I have always had problems with my emotions. I have little skill at controlling myself as you well know. With this bond we share, I find I have even less control. You have maintained your commitment to the light, but it has been in spite of me, rather than because of any help I lend. It has become increasingly obvious that I am not guiding you, and could never guide you."

"You're doing the best you can."

"My best is not good enough. It is kind of you to think well of me, but I have made a grave error in coming along with you. I simply hope that you will not pay the price of my hubris."

I took her hand. "Bastila, we can always help each other. I will support you as much as I am able."

She squeezed my hand. "That is a kinder response than my efforts deserve. There is wisdom beyond your training in them. Very well. We can help each other, and keep ourselves from the darkness. For our own sake, and for the mission."

_ I stood among trees so great that even a cruiser's cannon would have had trouble cutting them down. A path lay before me, and I knew that my goal was there. I walked down it, past hulking droids of an alien design, stopping before a dais. It glowed, and an alien appeared. It was another of the ones I had seen in the ancient statues on Tatooine. It reached out, and spoke-_

I came awake. Sasha lay beside me, and whimpered in her sleep. I kissed her hair, wrapped my arms around her, and went back to sleep.

Bastila

"Another vision." I said to Danika when she entered the mess hall at breakfast. "The Force is guiding us, leading us in the footsteps of Revan and Malak. Ever closer to the Star Forge."

"I never saw such trees before."

"Wroshyr trees, the largest trees in the galaxy. Kashyyyk is known for them. It is a simple and undeveloped world. I would never have suspected that something as technologically advanced as the Star Map would be here."

"All I saw was huge trees. But there was soil. Perhaps it is on the forest floor itself."

"Possibly. The native species are called Wookiees. They live in villages in the upper branches, going to the forest floor only on ritual quests. Only the bravest among them dare the Shadowlands as they are called. Considering that, it is not surprising that the Star Map could have remained hidden.

"No matter, once we have found the Star Map, the situation will become clear."

The ship dropped through the atmosphere, and suddenly we came out of the cloud cover. Below us stretched the Forest.

To say that Kashyyyk has a forest is like saying an ocean is a body of water. Kashyyyk had been discovered only about fifty years earlier, and it was nothing but forest. All of the intelligent life lives as far up the huge trees as they can climb safely. The Wroshyr trees reach as much as four kilometers into the air, towering above the oceans.

Czerka Corporation had set up the operations in a half-kilometer square area, and building landing stages and warehouses in the treetops. I would have never considered trying to land a ship such as the _Ebon Hawk_, over 200 tons of mass in what amounted to an oversized tree house, and I winced as Carth did it with aplomb.

"We are getting a call from Czerka control. They asked who owns and commands Ebon Hawk." Juhani reported.

"Tell them Danika Wordweaver on a mission from the Jedi Council is registered owner and commander." Carth ordered.

Juhani spoke, then listened. "The Czerka Company police request a file on all persons aboard. They are looking for several people that are considered criminals. No one on the list is aboard." She looked at me. "They include Davik Kang.

"Send them what they asked for."

I stood walking aft. Danika was sipping a mug of tea. "Well?"

"We'll stay minimal for the moment. I'll take Carth and Zaalbar. Have Mission see about supplies. If she can get herself and Sasha some candy, I won't complain. Have Canderous stand guard."

"Agreed."

Kashyyyk

Danika

The smell and sights reminded me of home. Of course we didn't have Wroshyr trees at home, but there is a fecund smell in a jungle that reaches into the primal mind. There is also the constant noise of life in the forest. After a while it fades into a subtle background. I felt at home immediately. A jungle is living and dying at the same time. The living devours anything that dies almost instantly. Everything alive is being hunted by something else. Even the trees. On Kashyyyk, the Wroshyr grow straight up for almost a hundred meters before branching out. The limbs intertwine so tightly that a tree will die and not even fall. It merely begins sinking slowly into the depths as rot and scavengers weaken and devour the lower limbs.

The pad we were on was linked by a walkway large enough for cargo loaders to maneuver on. I discovered later that the Wookiee built these walkways themselves. The nearest village, named Rwookrrorro, was the largest on the planet. The walkway from the Corporate sector to the village was called the Great Walkway. It was larger than the ones before me now.

I turned to ask Zaalbar how it felt to be home, but he looked nervous, almost embarrassed. "Is something wrong?"

"I honor my life debt." He growled. "But I see no reason to discuss this further."

"You don't trust me?"

"It is not that. There is nothing personal in this, but I feel you would never understand. The ways of my people are not for outsiders to see. You will have to accept that."

"You are going to have to tell me eventually."

"The sun will also die eventually. That doesn't mean it will happen today."

I shrugged.

An Ithorian came toward me holding the ever-present data pad. "I am Janos Wertka, chief of operations for this facility. Welcome to G5-623." He looked at the pad. "I do not see you on my list of scheduled arrivals. The Czerka Corporation will see to you needs, of course, but as an unscheduled arrival you must pay the 100 credit docking fee in advance I fear."

I looked at him, and from within I felt an upwelling of the Force. "But I have already paid the docking fees."

He looked at me for a long moment, then at his pad. "I see that you paid your fees on a previous voyage. I am sorry." He made a notation on his pad. "I see there is a Wookiee in your party. Can I assume that you understand his language? If not Czerka Corporation will supply translator earplugs for a modest fee."

"There is no need for that." I answered.

"If you say so. I have found that very few people not from this planet can understand their yowling. If there is anything else you require, I will be in my offices." He turned and walked away.

"Next time, you could think about the rest of us. Neither Canderous nor I speak Wookiee." Carth said.

"I'll pick them up for you before we leave." I demurred.

"Human?" I turned. Coming toward us, a wide smile showing pointed teeth, was Komad Fortuna. "I see that the call of the hunt has brought you here as well!" He looked around. "The katarn are said to be magnificent!"

"Komad! What are you doing here? I'd almost think you were following me!"

"Perish the thought. There are enough amateur hunters of people that I fail to see the need for a true professional. Though I admit you would make an interesting hunt. Dayso Cooh was bound here from Tatooine, and he asked me to accompany him. I think he really wanted a story for his news feed. The 'Great Hunter out of his element'. If I had known you would bound here, I would have booked passage with you." He sighed. "Then again, if I had known the political situation, I might have merely gone somewhere else."

"Political situation?"

"If you are on an unscheduled ship, they assume you must be from one of the civil rights or animal protection organizations. Their operations here have been under intense scrutiny, though the Republic Senate still refuses to hear the cases."

"Slavery."

"And genocide. They discovered a small primate of the planet called the tach. The animal has a chemical in one of its glands, which heightens the affects of alcohol. The main drink using it was Tarisian ale until recently. Since Taris has been destroyed, they have been trying to find other outlets. But they have slaughtered millions of them, and there is no end in sight as long as tach still live." He sighed. "I can go into the Shadowlands; Czerka doesn't care what you do here as long as you pay their docking fees. But you also have to get permission from the chief of Rwookrrorro village and he demands that you hunt a crazed Wookiee and bring proof of his death back first."

He sighed. "I do not hunt sentient beings. Worse yet, I am at least in part, a conservationist, as is any good hunter. It is madness to kill a Krayt Dragon if it is also the last of its kind! I had hoped to gain the trust of the locals, discover how they hunt, and what they hunt so that my activities would not cause injury to the ecosystem. But too many people, like Czerka, have come saying they were friends, and lying about it.

"I have heard there is an out worlder actually living down in the Shadowlands for some years now. But that might be hunter's tales." He looked around, and smiled gently. "But even this, the view of something that is not desert has cleansed my spirit. I so wish to run down among the life that feeds upon the great trees. To witness it! It is a shame the planet was discovered by Czerka! Their only appreciation of nature is what it will pay their corporate bottom line."

"If they had not, then whom would you deal with?" I asked.

"I would have been the one to discover the planet myself. The Wookiee have a rich culture and society, but it isn't seen by off worlders. I can't understand why they allow Czerka to get away with what they are doing."

"Perhaps they had no choice." Zaalbar growled.

Fortuna turned toward him. "If it had been my planet I would have fought even if it meant dying instead!" Then he shrugged. "But I am only another off worlder. I fear that someone among your own people is complicit in this, my large friend. I just want to know why." He turned, thrusting out his hand in a firm grip. "Perchance we can hunt together before you leave. It will be glorious!"

We continued on. I noted a sign for the corporate offices, and motioned toward them.

It was a busy place, half a dozen people were busy routing cargos to the half dozen Czerka owned and independent ships that were there. Janos Wertka saw us, and motioned for us to approach. "Welcome to our local headquarters. How may Czerka help you here on Edean?"

"Edean? I thought the planet was Kashyyyk. And you called it G5-623 when we arrived."

"Kashyyyk is what the Wookiee call it. But since they did not discover it, we labeled it by it's catalog number G5-623. However I have just been informed that at the last stockholder's meeting they voted overwhelmingly to name it Edean." He looked toward Zaalbar. "However considering your traveling companion, I feel you must be familiar with this world."

"I have been away from home for a long time." Zaalbar replied.

Wertka looked surprised. "You let the beast speak for you? You allow it far more liberties than most of our clients."

"What do you mean by that?" I asked.

"Slavers and those that buy slaves don't let us talk if they can avoid it." Zaalbar said.

"Slavery is such an ugly and untrue word. We bring Wookiee from their homes, train them in essential skills, and hire them out to companies and people across the Galaxy."

"Whether they want to go or not." Zaalbar growled.

Wertka looked at him then at me. "Your Wookiee seems to be bothered by this arrangement. But I fail to see his concern. You appear to be a satisfied customer at least."

"I am not his owner. Zaalbar has pledged a life-debt to me."

"Ah, I see." Wertka said sagely. "So difficult to arrange, but it is much better than a restraint collar."

Zaalbar roared in anger. "Do not defame the life-debt! Do not!"

"I must warn you that any damage he does, or injury he causes, will be your fault as owner. Call the beast off."

"Zaalbar, later." I said. He growled, then nodded sullenly. "Why do the Wookiee accept this, arrangement?"

"It isn't only me. We have seven other stations on the planet. As for the arrangement, the chief of Rwookrrorro village signed an accord with us five years ago."

"What was this arrangement?" I asked.

"The internal workings of Czerka Corporation are not open to-"

I leaned forward, that upwelling of the Force was a torrent. "You will tell me what I wish to know."

His eyes glazed. "He has been supplying Wookiee trackers to help us in our harvesting. This has eased our problems, and made our harvesting more humane. It also stops the harvesting from being a running firefight. In return we supply the village with such modern conveniences as weapons. The bow-caster your servant carries was made in one of our factories."

"Who is this leader?"

"His name is Chuundar I believe. I didn't negotiate with the accord personally. The smell bothers my nose."

"Chuundar." Zaalbar growled. "That was a name I did not want to hear again."

"It seems your servant has issues with this Wookiee. But it doesn't matter. The Corporation needs to maintain the arrangement. We don't even meddle in their disagreements between themselves. We just make sure that leader is supported wholeheartedly. Any dissent is, dealt with."

I released the grip on the Force, and Wertka's eyes cleared. "Well if there is no further information you need, I am really rather busy. Feel free to shop our concourse. However I would suggest caution if you go onto the Great Walkway. We do not have the personnel we would need to assure safety, and we do not have the money for rescue mission."

"Thank you." I turned. Zaalbar looked as if he wanted to rip off the Ithorian's eyestalks. "Zaalbar, let's go back to the ship."

He nodded, and we left. I found a quiet nook where no one would overhear, and stopped him. "Talk to me, Zaalbar."

"My home. I should have prepared you better for coming here I will now admit. But I didn't think I would have to prepare myself for how much it has changed."

"Prepare me for what?"

"I did not leave home voluntarily. I know Mission has told you that I was taken by slavers, but there is more. I was already an exile from my tribe when they took me. That was before the arrangement the Ithorian spoke of."

"Why were you exiled?"

"My brother made deals with small teams of slavers and helped them gain their first foothold. When I discovered this, I attacked him. My father and his advisers stopped the fight, but he did not believe me when I told him the reason."

"Why not?"

"I was so angry with him that I broke our most honored taboo. I used my claws." He stretched out a hand, and the claws came out. They were at least 30 millimeters long, and went down to needle points. I had seen him delicately lock those claws on a jammed nut, and twist it out with just his wrist instead of using a hyper spanner. They could hold something the size of my head, or as small as a pin with the same delicacy. The Wookiee were considered among the premier mechanics in the Galaxy.

"You don't know what this means to my people. Since Bacca the Great our claws have been tools, never weapons. We dragged ourselves out of the Shadows far below by always remembering that." He looked at me sadly. "To my people I am a Mad-claw. A monster that walks as a Wookiee. Even if I told them what you have learned, they would not believe me. I am tainted, evil. I deserve to be banished."

Carth

I was kinda glad I didn't speak Wookiee when Danika talked with Zaalbar. She sent him back to the ship, and as we walked, she filled me in. Zaalbar might have been a Wookiee, but he had always struck me as an honorable being. I wondered what I would have done if my brother, if I had one, had done the same thing. I think I probably would have beaten him to a pulp. A good thing my family-

Carth? Carth Onasi! I thought that was you!"

I turned, looking at the smiling man approaching me. "Jordo!" I leaped forward, catching him in a bear hug.

"I thought you'd be out there painting your name across the stars! What happened, your ship crash?"

"Actually yes it did."

Jordo roared. "I didn't think anything would tie you to the ground." He looked toward Danika. "It might be your attractive friend that finally got you on soil again."

"I assume you're a friend of Carth's." She looked at me with a twinkle in her eye. "I didn't know he even had any."

"Best friends in the world, missy! Joined the Militia the same day back on Telos. That was back during the Mandalorian Wars."

"So what are you doing here, Jordo? The last time I saw you was... Well it was on Telos after the attack."

"Yeah, it's a shame about home. It still hasn't recovered from the attack. The relief efforts were a joke. The Senate was screaming about the cost, and handed it over to a Corporation. That corporation decided to make ends meet by convincing the planet to dragoon anyone with space flight experience into their commercial fleet."

"Let me guess, Czerka?"

"You got it. Anyway, I didn't find out until after you'd left about Morgana. I'm sorry, man."

"Nothing can be done about it, Jordo, but thanks."

Trying to lighten the mood, he turned his attention back to Danika. "But I can see why you keep this one around. Morgana's hair, her eyes, but not her..." He juggled as if holding two melons chest high. "Upper body strength."

"Hey chill your jets. That's the owner of my ship."

"No spit? Then if I keep it up she'll dump you?"

"Out of the airlock in hyperspace." Danika said smoothly.

Jordo laughed. "Well it isn't all bad is it? Dustil's alive-"

"What?" I felt as if someone had punched me in the gut.

"He's alive on Korriban." Jordo looked worried. "You mean you didn't know?" He looked from me to Danika. "Yeah. He's a student at the Sith Academy there. I saw him in uniform and everything."

"No, I didn't know. He's been missing since the attack. The Sith must have captured him when they landed."

"Maybe. But he's spouting the same garbage the Sith always do-"

"A word." Danika interrupted. "What is a Republic Corporation doing dealing with the Sith?"

Jordo looked around. "When Czerka picked me up, I found out there's a whole lot going on. They've signed an agreement that Czerka carries all of their trade and sells it in Republic markets as coming from somewhere else. They're even trying to negotiate with the government of Manaan to carry all Kolto to both sides so the Selkath can kick both off the planet." He dropped his voice. "I can drop a datapad with all this information off at your ship before I return upstairs. We're in orbit."

"What's your cargo?"

"Coming out of here?" Jordo asked sardonically.

"Yeah. Thanks for letting me know. Take care." I watched him walk away. "He's alive." I looked at Danika. "After all this time, he's alive!" I thought of his face, only a dim memory now. "He'll be a man by now."

"We'll find him." Danika promised.

Danika

Carth and I left after making sure Zaalbar got aboard. I was in a hurry to complete this mission. As much as a Republican company buying from the enemy, carrying slaves in contravention of law and making secret deals with a neutral planet was important, I had to finish what we had started here. The Czerka guards were surly, but allowed us to pass onto the Great Walkway.

There were three landing stages, and as we passed one a shuttle landed. A dozen Wookiee in restraint collars were chivvied aboard, and it lifted. Part of me was coldly furious. To treat anyone this way was an abomination.

We were almost to the village when my com squealed.

"Danika, they came and took him and we couldn't do anything!" Mission wailed.

"Calm down, Mission. What is it?"

"It's Zaalbar! A couple of Wookiee showed up with half a dozen Czerka bullyboys, and arrested Zaalbar on the orders of some guy named Chuundar!"

Carth cursed. "Interesting timing. After you're gone. Only the captain of a ship can demand proper extradition procedures."

"What about Janos?"

"Bastila talked with him. He said the Wookiee deal with their own when it comes to criminal acts. He doesn't have any authority."

_But enough to help them take someone off a ship. _"All right, Mission, I'll deal with it. Put Canderous on."

"Just a minute."

"Canderous."

"Report."

"Just as Mission said. Two Wookiees, half a dozen Czerka with Janos taking up the rear. He stated that if we didn't turn Zaalbar over, they would blow us off our landing legs. They had two anti-ship cannon mounted on lifters and brought them out as they were trying to get past me. Bastila said to let them go, and we'd get him back."

"In a moment I want you to put Bastila on. But before you do, I have orders."

"_Chu_!" Canderous shouted the Mandalorian word for 'Sir!', meaning he would obey anything I said.

"No one comes aboard that ship except for our crew from this moment on. If anyone attempts to come aboard, you are to stop them. Peacefully if possible. But if peace will not serve, blow them to hell. That goes for those damn guns if they man them."

"_Chu_!"

"Put Bastila on."

"Danika-"

"I don't want to hear it, Bastila." I said wearily. "You may have saved the ship and the mission, but it might cost us Zaalbar's freedom and life. When I get back, we'll discuss it."

"I am sorry, Danika."

I cut off the communication without speaking. "Come on."

We ran the rest of the way.

There was a guard at the village gates, and he roared at me. "Stop where you are, Outsider!"

I wasn't in the mood. "Who dares stand in my way?" I roared right back at him in Shyriiwook. "What mother whelped such a pup!"

He shrank back, surprised at my vehemence. Then he stiffened. "It is to Chuundar that you must answer for bringing a Mad-claw exile back among us! Come!"

The Wookiee village was beautiful. A work of art created by people that had only rudimentary tools until a century before. The common village level was broad and airy; nets laid to block Mynar Hawks and Web crawlers. The village runs up the trees for half a kilometer, with the nurseries at the very tops.

I just wish I had come without mayhem on my mind.

An elderly Wookiee stopped us at the door to the residence, slamming his staff down and shouting, "Step forward and address the Mighty Chuundar! Ruler of Rwookrrorro!"

I stormed forward, facing a slim Wookiee sitting on a huge chair.

"It is normal courtesy to bow." He said calmly.

"It is _common_ courtesy to ask before boarding a ship." I gritted back. He looked surprised at the fluency of my Shyriiwook

"Ah but I did. Dear Janos assisted me."

"Spare me the histrionics." I snarled. "You have kidnapped one of my crew, and I will have him back."

"Kidnapped?" He laughed. "No, captain. I merely brought my dear brother home for a consultation. There has been no injury. Yet." He waved languidly, and a pair of Wookiee dragged Zaalbar in. One wielded a restraint collar control, and pressed the button. Zaalbar screamed in pain, collapsing to the floor.

"Touch that again, and you die." I hissed. He looked at me, then at Chuundar. What he saw in my eyes must have convinced him. "As I said Chuundar, spare me the melodrama."

"Did you think you could wander the upper boughs of the forest without me knowing my dear brother had returned?" Chuundar laughed.

"That Janos is working with you was more interesting."

"Of course he works with me. I am his pet Wook!" He laughed again, this time an ugly sound. "We work very closely."

"You work with slavers! You betray your own people!" Zaalbar roared. The one with the control box wisely left it alone.

"Oh not our people, dear brother. There are a thousand tribes. Each of our enemies can say I have punished them instead of selling off our own."

"That is worse." I snapped.

"Really. Your race is the biggest market woman. Your kind love to see us having to bow and scrape to you." He looked at Zaalbar. "As for you, brother, you shouldn't use that tone with me. Things have changed here. You are a Mad-claw without honor or name, while I? I am Chieftain." He looked back at me. "And my people agree with me on this."

"A tidy nest of lies." I said. "Right up to the part about your people backing you."

"Ah but they do." He grinned. "With Zaalbar a Mad-claw, and our own father enslaved, Mighty Chuundar stepped up and we have been at peace ever since."

"Mighty Chuundar?" Zaalbar laughed. "You were the runt of the litter!" Then all of his words came through. "Freyyr enslaved! When?"

"We have much to discuss, brother, but that can wait until I am done with your friends." He turned back to us.

"What do you want?"

"Ah sweet words now? Well let us say I have taken your knight, and you must kill my bishop." He motioned toward Zaalbar. "I have a use for him, but there is another Mad-claw below. One that has gone insane. He is interfering with the business of my allies, and must be stopped. But as my brother can tell you, we dislike killing our own except in the heat of battle."

"So someone still stands against you?"

"What of it? Like my brother he is declared Mad-claw. No tribe would dare give him shelter for fear of being declared so themselves. This one is mad and in misery, and you are going to hunt him down and kill him.

"My brother shall stay here and we will reminisce about old times, and times to come that he can share if he is willing."

"You are insane." I snarled.

"Really? You won't need his assistance. All of the people of my village and all the closer villages understand your Basic. They think it is so they can understand our enemies, but it is really so they can better serve. The local villages play tribute so we will take those from farther away. No one can stand against me here. Only someone of the royal family can stand against me, and the only one left is my dear Mad-claw brother. They will not support an off worlder against me."

"There is one that can!" Zaalbar roared.

"I assume you speak of our dear enslaved father. If he were here perhaps. He went mad when he discovered that you were right about me. Swore to lead our people against them. But without the Sword of Bacca, he could not challenge me. I do know our laws so well." He reached behind him, taking the hilt of a vibroblade from a chest by the chair. "A pity someone lost the blade itself. But as long as I hold it, I am Chieftain. That is the law." He threw it contemptuously back into the box. "Let our departed father go Zaalbar. The Wookiee will go forward into the future, but at a pace I set."

"Patience, Zaalbar." I said.

"Enough words from you, Off Worlder. Go with my warriors. They will take you to the way down into the Shadowlands. Gorwooken my best warrior will take you down and bring you back up when you are done."

Carth and I were escorted by a full dozen of Chuundar's people to the lift car. Using unbreakable kshyy vines, it took us down into the depths.

"What is this I heard about a human that lives down there?"

Gorwooken snorted. "You should avoid him. He is crazier than even the Mad-claw. He has been here for a long time, twenty of your years or more.

The car stopped at a wooden platform, and Gorwooken waved. "Go."

We started through the darkness. The Shadowlands are well named. Enough light filtered through that you could see, but it was a perpetual twilight. We avoided animals as we went. There were katarn in plenty, and we had to kill a few to get through. As we came around a corner a few hours later I heard the roaring hiss of a katarn.

An old man stood against a tree, facing four katarn. Before we could draw our weapons he leaped forward. A lightsaber blossomed to life, and he leaped, cutting the head of one of his attackers in half as he flew over it. He landed on a branch above the survivors. They hissed in frustration then fell to feeding on their dead companion. As soon as they did, he leaped to another tree, then down again. While ready to fight, they ignored us as well.

"Well, come on out, you two. You're about as subtle as a Cantina on a Saturday night."


	17. Kashyyyk: Star Map

Jolee

I saw the woman in what looked like Jedi robes, and the man in armor come out. Hunters. Hate the damn people. Most think killing something is a thrill. The only people I loathed more were people who dressed in costume. So I had two people I didn't like already. Still I couldn't just let them get eaten because they were stupid. "Watch yourself." I warned. "The ones behind me aren't all of them by any stretch."

"You are a Jedi?" She asked. It wasn't the 'oh my gosh' voice you would anticipate of the kind. Just a question expecting a serious answer. The woman came close enough for me to recognize. I had seen her as a kid. Never expected her to be here. Obviously the recognition wasn't mutual.

"Don't go all impressed on me. A simple obeisance is sufficient." I said. What are you two doing down here?"

"We're looking for a Wookiee." The man said.

"Came to the right place for that. Planet's full of them last time I looked. Can you be more specific?"

"The chieftain of Rwookrrorro has kidnapped one of our companions, a Wookiee named Zaalbar. He wants us to kill a Mad-claw down here." She said. I could tell she was angry about the situation and her friend.

"There aren't any Mad-claws down here right now. Except for Freyyr-"

"Freyyr?" Her head came up. "The Mad-claw we were sent after is Chuundar's _father_?" She looked to her companion. "Of course. He can't get his own people to do it, Czerka obviously can't find him or can't kill him. That's why Komad was told he couldn't hunt unless he killed the 'Mad-claw'." She shook her head. "This changes things."

"So what are you going to do?" I asked. "Kill him anyway?"

"I can't just kill him!" She looked appalled. "Even if he were a Mad-claw like Chuundar claimed, I would shudder to think that was my only option! Give Chuundar who is helping enslave his own people what he wants?" She shook her head. "I could never sleep again."

I nodded. She had the right outlook. "Then I can help you." I stuck out my hand. "Jolee Bindo."

She shook. Obviously she was in charge. "Danika Wordweaver, and Carth Onasi." Luckily she turned partway toward her companion during the introduction. She didn't see my puzzled look. "Where can we find Freyyr?"

"He's not in this section of the Shadowlands. Czerka put up a force-field portal to the section where he is, but ol' Jolee was watching when they did. I can get us through. But first I have to pick up a few things from my digs."

I led them at a rapid walk. I had been a pretty good judge of character when I was younger, before the order and I had a falling out. They didn't like me telling stories of the Sith wars to the kids, and pushing the young Padawan too hard. I complained that life is hard, and all history was is stories from the point of view of someone that wasn't there to actually see it. Read most history books if you don't believe me. Every Jedi and Republic trooper was a saint, and all the Sith were devils. If you believe that, I could sell you the home I lived in on Kashyyyk as a 'fixer-upper'. This kid had grown into her powers, and could go far.

But why did she give me a different name?

My digs are just that. I found a trunk of a fallen Wroshyr tree, and hollowed it out. Made a stove and pipes for it from the local clay, made it nice and comfortable. I went into the back room and changed clothes. I hadn't worn my Jedi robes in years. One thing I did bring was a hermetically sealed storage container, so they hadn't rotted. It was hard to get used to them again. I didn't want to use them but I didn't feel right just going as Ol' Jolee if they were serious about doing well.

Danika merely nodded when I stepped back out. As we headed toward the portal, I tried to impart knowledge to them. "The company has a gold mine here, if they looked at it right. Take that Syren plant you're about to step on, Carth. It stings small animals and their bodies supply fertilizer. Or they're pulled into its flower and are digested directly." He hastily backed away from it. "Now the larger ones, like the one you're moving back toward," He flinched, and moved closer to me, "they do the same with bigger animals, or careless people." I moved around the plant. The flower turned to follow, but it's a plant, they don't move fast. I caught the back of the flower, and pointed. "Right here is the poison reservoir. That stuff could be used in medical research, because in small doses, it paralyzes only for a short time.

"The Wookiee have legends that say they came from somewhere else a long time ago. Even the trees aren't native. There are things down here no Czerka employee or outsider has seen except for me. I won't tell the corporation because this forest would be a stubble field when they were done."

He spent the next few minutes watching out for Syrens.

We heard weapons firing, and Danika stopped. "A battle?"

"Nah. Those damn Tach hunters." I pointed at a small primate that sat there staring owlishly at us. "That is a tach. Fearsome creature isn't it? They hunt them for the glands." I held my fingers about 25 millimeters apart. "They kill the animal for something that big. So people on Taris can get blitzed on ale with the strength of wine."

"Not any more." Carth said. "Taris was destroyed by the Sith."

"They're back again?" I shook my head. "What were the Jedi doing when that happened? Having tea and biscuits?"

"No." Danika said. "Two renegade Jedi joined with the Sith. They killed Revan, but Malak is now in command."

"They killed Revan?" I looked at her. "I knew the girl when she was a sprout. I don't think she was that easy to kill."

"Easy!' Carth said. Then he started into a retelling of the battle of Zanebra. I listened, watching her. She was watching the terrain around us, assuring that nothing large enough to be dangerous got close.

"Well it sounds like they got her." I finally said to shut him up. Man I haven't heard those many words since the last time I tried to talk with the Czerkas up top! "Me I'd want to see the body." I signaled for silence, and led them up a hill. Tach are the most inoffensive and stupid creatures you can imagine. They survive as a species because they breed as if they were born pregnant. Sort of like the Gizka, but someone had actually found a use for the Tach.

The tach group just sat there as the gunners shot them. Below us, half a dozen Czerka employees were dragging the bodies of their kills toward a lifter. There two of them were using vibroblades to gut the tach, pulling out the glands, and throwing the bodies aside. They had a pile a meter high, and several more piles scattered behind them. As the pile reached the level of the lifter, one would get in the driver's seat and pull a few meters away.

"Horrible." Danika whispered. "Is there no way to stop them?"

"Ol' Ma nature would if it wasn't for that." I pointed at the half a dozen sonic fence generators set out from the sides of the lifter on tractor beams. "They're piling up a lot of meat. That attracts the local predators and scavengers. But those generators stop them from coming too close. Every couple of hours they move a klick or so away, and it starts all over again. A pity really; you can't use a full power blaster to kill tach, it fries the glands. And those pop guns they're using wouldn't scratch a katarn." I pointed across the small valley. What looked like a gathering of the katarn clans was going on. All they were waiting for was the vehicle moving on to the next location. If we stayed much longer, they would be spreading to our side as well.

She considered this. "What if the generators go down?"

"I thought of that, but at least two have to go down to weaken the field enough." I shrugged. "I'd thought of doing it simpler, you know, throwing my lightsaber and cutting two of them down, but since I berated them the first time, they keep a careful watch for me and especially for my lightsaber. I can get to one by sneaking up on them, but to get two I might have to move where they can see me."

"But there are three of us."

"No, only two." I waved at Carth. "Not saying you can't sabotage a generator, boy. It's just you have to move across that open space, and they watch carefully in case an old coot named Jolee was to stroll up. They have a shoot on sight with no warning order out for me. The Company would send a really nice apology letter to your family if you got shot, but they don't care beyond the postage if you ask me." I tapped Danika on the nose. "It's just you and me, kid."

She nodded, and we moved apart. Moving across an open space unnoticed is one thing even a Jedi kid knows, and she wasn't a kid. I reached my generator, and reached up, opening the access panel. The idea was to fry one of the circuits, but make it look like simple fatigue, or wear. Kashyyyk is an invasive planet, and there are bugs that can get into anything if you give them enough time. I picked up a beetle, and slipped it into the compartment. They like the taste of gold, and the circuitry used a lot of it. I wasn't even back up the hill when suddenly two of the generators shorted out almost simultaneously.

The men didn't notice, but the system sure did. An alarm wailed, and the men stared toward the generators. A man ran toward the control system, and started to access it. If he had dived for the flight controls he might have made it.

That's when the wrath of the katarn decided to descend. A dozen or so charged, headed for all that piled up meat. Behind them were more. A lot more. One of the men fired, and his shot hit a katarn bull that stood a meter and a half at the shoulder. It spun, and after taking a look, decided he liked his meat fresh.

The others were a lot smarter. They took off as fast as their legs could carry them while that bull was busy with their friend. Not that it really helped a lot. A lot of katarn found out there wasn't enough piled meat ready for all of them, and charged along after them.

"You know, you learn more respect for nature by trying to prove who is better one on one with what nature gave you or you had to make with your own hands." I said. "He learned that the hard way."

We circled around the feeding frenzy. We wouldn't have to deal with any more katarn for a while.

"You didn't come to Kashyyyk just to go Wookiee hunting, did you youngster?"

"No." Danika replied. "We're looking for a Star Map."

"That old thing. Never worked for me, why should it work for you?"

She stared at me. "I don't believe it! Months of training, fighting Krayt Dragons stopping feuds rescuing Jawa negotiating with Sand people for what?" She looked at Carth. "We get here and all he has to say is 'Oh, that old thing'." She threw her hands in the air. "I give up."

"Well it could have been worse." I said."

"Enlighten me."

"I could have been on one of my vision quests, and never met you."

She shook her head.

We came to the force field, and I pointed at it. "You can tell it's new. The Wookiee haven't disabled it and stripped it down. The first ships that landed way back when had problems with that you know. The Wookiee would take any machines the survey teams set up apart trying to see how they worked. That's how Czerka found out about their mechanical bent." I waved toward the trees around the portal. "Anywhere but Kashyyyk, this might even have worked.

It stops anything that walks, but what about climbers? Wookiee, tach, hell, even katarn can just go up and over. You and me though have to find another way." I walked over toward the portal, and ran my hands along the column to the right. Now let me see..." The panel opened, and I reached inside. Couldn't use a bug here. The tolerances were a lot tighter. I found the control stud and pressed it. With a buzz the field died.

I stood back. "This is a part of the Shadowlands even the Wookiee avoid. Freyyr is there, and so is what you seek."

Danika

He was a surly old man who talked little or ran off at the mouth when interested. Was bothered by others talking and used to being alone.

I found liked him.

Jolee led us into the heart of the Shadowlands, and every word he did speak told us more about the world. The Web-crawlers used a silk for their webs that was strong enough to support a Wookiee. He had pointed out that if properly synthesized, it would make ropes that could hold any weight. The kshyy vines had already found a market for restraining Ronto and Bantha.

The shadows deepened until it was twilight. Small animals scurried away from us, and larger animals we avoided as well. Finally we came to a clearing. There were ritual stones set in the ground, and Jolee read them for us.

_ Feed the beast and it will heed your call. _

_ Take vipers from their lairs. _

_ Hang them upon the vines, as did our ancestors. _

_ Let their blood scent the air and mark the ground._

_ The beast comes when summoned if you are generous. _

_ It comes to do battle if you are worthy and wise._

_ It grants you glory if you are fearsome and brave. _

"A ritual hunting ground." I whispered. "It looks ancient."

"And unused for quite a while. I know it hasn't been used since I came down here." Jolee said. He brushed some moss from the stone. Then he stiffened. "Freyyr is here."

I reached out with the Force. Yes. A single Wookiee watched from nearby. He carried a massive Wookiee double-sword, one that made my engaged lightsaber look like a twig.

"More Czerka." He hissed, coming into view. "Must you defame and destroy everything? Enslave my people kill the tach make deals with my own son? No more!" He spun his weapon into guard, facing us. "Come! You want my head as well, take it if you can!" With a roar, he charged.

I blocked frantically. "Freyyr, we are not with Czerka!" I shouted. His attack continued. Carth was trying to get a shot at him, but Freyyr was a savvy warrior, and kept me between them. Jolee reached out, and Freyyr was pinned by the

Force.

"Listen to her old friend!" He shouted.

The Wookiee struggled against the bands of Force energy. "Kill me! I have learned that only lies issue from your kind!"

"He's almost feral after so long. This might be difficult."

I shut down my lightsaber, and held out my hands. When I spoke it wasn't Basic, instead it was the booming roar of Shyriiwook. "A chieftain must think before he does anything!" I roared. "Even Bacca considered what he did before he formed the ritual blade!"

He stopped, then suddenly started struggling again. "The words of out worlders are only lies! You will not convince me by speaking my own language instead!"

"Do you call Zaalbar a liar as well?"

He stopped struggling again. "My son that is dishonored. What do you know of him, out worlder?"

"He came with me on our ship."

"You claim to be his owner?"

"Never! Zaalbar swore a life debt to me. He follows me because of that oath."

"A life debt." He sagged. "Then he sees more in you than I do. I will listen. But I will have to think on what you say. Being willing to listen to Czerka and my own son Chuundar has made me wary."

"Let him go Jolee." The old man released the bonds. Freyyr roared, and swung at my head. I stood, not defending myself.

The blade stopped close enough that I could feel its kiss against my neck. The Wookiee grinned. "Only one that Zaalbar would follow would have allowed the honor strike." He lifted the blade from my neck. I lit my lightsaber, swinging, and stopped it a bare centimeter from his face. He nodded. "And only one he would follow willingly would return it so deftly." He drove the blade of his weapon into the ground. "Speak."

"We came for the Star Map."

"That alien abomination. The Wookiee came here before the dawn of our

memory as slaves, the trees were created by a malfunction of that machine." He waved toward the massive trunks around us. "Now it is our home, and we have known no other. Why are you here to face me?"

"Chuundar took Zaalbar prisoner. Sent us to kill a Mad-claw. Only meeting Jolee first told us who you were."

"Chuundar." The name was a growl. "My son's lies sent Zaalbar into exile. If only I had listened to him before that. Chuundar and those who are like him had been leading Czerka slaver parties to our hunters, and worse the hunters of other tribes nearby. He blamed the disappearances on the Shadowlands themselves. Zaalbar had discovered this, but when he confronted Chuundar, he was goaded into attacking. When I saw the blood of Zaalbar using his claws, I had to stop it. But the law is clear. He must be exiled, and until he had expiated his sin, he could not return. Slavers took him. Now I know they had been warned to expect him.

"When I discovered the truth Chuundar had already prepared. He had been my adviser, suggesting alliances with the neighboring clans. Signing papers the Czerka put before me.

"But five years ago, I saw people of those other tribes being hauled away as slaves by Czerka. Heard their own words that it was the papers I signed that consigned them to this fate. I confronted my son. But foolishly, I did it when only those he trusted were present." He sighed. "He admitted that he had clawed himself, that Zaalbar had been innocent. His trusted followers tried to kill me, throwing me off the walkway into the Shadowlands as if I was one of those damned by our laws. Only by luck did I live."

"That was when I saw him. Climbing down the trees instead of using the lift car. I distracted the team of Czerkas and Wookiee that followed to verify his death." Jolee said.

"Yes. I remember you now. I am sorry I attacked those that were my friends. Being hunted like an animal will do that to anyone."

He looked at the blade in his hands. "I took this off one that was sent to kill me, and I have waged a war to fight them and their Czerka allies ever since. They even put a force field up to stop me!" He bellowed his laughter. "I needed a little rest so it stands. I want to regain Bacca's blade, that is why I came. But I do not feel I am worthy."

"We saw the hilt of Bacca's blade above."

"Yes. But there is still a way. My son has created a net of lies to ensnare my people, but there are some among them that will bow to tradition rather than Chuundar. I must find the blade of Bacca's sword. Bring it to stand before Chuundar and the Council. That will give me a chance.

"Bacca was a great warrior of legend. Known for his ferocity and his cunning, and when he became leader, his wisdom as well. Bacca found a wreck of something, what he described as a great wing of metal. Within it, he found the blade that bears his name. Now we know that it was a crashed vessel that had been there for thousands of years. From before we existed as a people. The ship fell apart at his touch, but the blade stayed undimmed by time.

"When he was dying, he passed it on to another. Among our people it is not your blood that determines if you will be king, but your heart and the blade. Such is tradition. If I return with the blade, even if he has the hilt, it will shadow the succession. The people will be split on who should rule. Then I have a chance, no matter how small, of deposing him."

He motioned toward the ritual clearing. "That is why I come here, trying to gain the courage for the greatest fight of any Wookiee lifetime. To face the Great ritual Beast, and regain the blade."

"Regain?"

"Yes. A generation ago, a great leader named Rothrrrawr was challenged in his leadership. He brought Bacca's blade down to confront the Ritual beast. He failed in killing it, and broke the blade off in its hide. I was given the hilt when he was shamed by this loss. There are those that say our entire race was shamed, and that is why it was taken from us."

"Then you wish to fight this beast, but are afraid?" Carth asked.

Freyyr growled, then subsided. "If I face it and fail, I am not worthy of being our chieftain any longer. I am old, and not as strong as I was even five years ago."

I pondered. Something of Wookiee history. Where I had read it, I didn't even remember. "The companions." I said.

"What?"

"When Bacca went to gather the blade the first time, there were sworn companions that were with him. '_We pledge our life to you, oh great Bacca. To gain in honor by your very presence, and to die if need so that honor be served'_." I quoted. I dropped to my knee. "As they did then, I swear my service to you, Freyyr. To save your race from slavery, to guide my life with honor. Direct me."

"Are you mad?" Carth asked.

"No, I see where she is going." Jolee dropped to his knee. "Direct our swords to your cause."

Carth looked at us, then shrugged. "Let's do it."

Freyyr looked at us, then dropped to his own knee. "Be my heart, be my conscience, tell me when I fail in my honor. Protect my people even over my own life." He repeated the ancient words. Then he stood. "We need a Viper as bait." We found a herd of the beasts nearby. We killed one, and carried the carcass to the ritual circle. Freyyr hung it by a vine, and we moved away. I felt a presence so evil that I wanted to attack it the instant it appeared.

Then it came. "A terentatek!" Jolee gasped. "I thought they were extinct!"

The terentatek sniffed the air. Picture something that is all mouth razor sharp spines along it's back and sheering teeth. With a pair each of arms and legs attached almost as an afterthought. There might have been eyes ears, and a nose, but I didn't see them. It came forward, and the viper disappeared into its cavernous maw.

"Now!" Freyyr dropped like a bomb from the vine above the terentatek, his sword ripping into that massive head at the rear. Jolee and I leaped at it's front, and kept the claws occupied as it tried to get at it's tormenter. Carth blasted it, but the tough skin turned his bolts.

It wasn't sure what to do. It knew that it was in unbearable pain, but it could not ignore us. It spun, and we moved with it, dodging its claws, and striking at it to keep its attention. Freyyr was stabbing and cutting at its skull.

The beast spun, then collapsed, throwing Freyyr. I shouted, keeping its attention. It was sorely wounded, and seemed confused. It spun to face me, and Freyyr charged, ramming his sword deep into its underside.

It tried to rise up on its toes then fell again, this time for good. I gasped, staring at it. The description didn't do it justice. There was a raw suppurating wound on its back, and I motioned to Freyyr as he climbed out from underneath it. He took his sword, and slit open the flesh. The slim wand of a vibroblade fell out, and he caught it. Without the power of the vibration cell, it was merely a whip thin piece of metal.

"Bacca's blade. Returned to us." He looked at me, then at the others. "You, my companions, humble me. That out worlders would put their lives in danger for my people. Danika Wordweaver, my son has a life debt to you. If we succeed, I would be honored if you would accept us as your Honor Family."

"Honor Family!" Jolee was shocked. "I don't know if you realize how big a step that is!"

"No, I don't." I answered.

"He's saying his entire tribe owes you such a debt that you have to become family for them to pay it back. You're a Wookiee in every way except genetics if he does that."

I looked up into that furry face. "I can not express the humility that offer causes in me, Freyyr. Thank you."

"No, thank you, Danika Wordweaver. I call you Shrromarrik, 'Daughter of Honor' in front of witnesses. That alone will tell my people how much I owe you."

"We must hurry to the upper levels. This ends today."

"I must find the Star Map first."

"Then I must come with you. Honor demands it."

Computer

The computer gave me an idea of what the creators might have been capable of when they still lived. The entire structure was buried in the ground except for a small dais and the Star map pintel. When we approached, it began to hum. I pictured this freshly built, with trees merely a few meters tall if Freyyr was correct. Now it was a tiny alcove in a mass of wooden walls. Yet the trees shrouded it and came no closer.

"There it is. Weird thing isn't it."

As we approached a holographic interface came on line. The figure that stood there looked like the statues we had seen on Tatooine. A humanoid figure, with eyes set off the bullet shaped skull on either side.

"Neural access commenced. Proper subject present."

"It never said anything like that before. Only 'unsuitable life form detected'." Jolee grumped.

"Beginning socialized interface. Awaiting instruction. This terminal has not been accessed in quite some time."

"Who has attempted to access you?"

"Three attempts by Wookiee identified as Freyyr. All denied. 152 attempts by unknown species named Jolee Bindo. All denied."

I looked at him. "Maybe I should have mentioned that I'm stubborn."

"Error. All other attempts deleted by previous user."

"Why have you acknowledged me?" I asked.

"Systems access error. Subject displays unfamiliarity with the interface. Behavioral configuration must be verified before continuing. I am sorry. I do not mean to confuse you. I will answer all questions to the best of my programming ability. However until configuration is verified, some segments of my system will be blocked."

"What do you mean by behavioral configuration?" I asked.

"I was designed to be accessed only by my creators. However at that time, it was considered that servant species might eventually have the right to access my databanks. A series of parameters was designed so that only those that matched the designer's beliefs would be allowed such access."

"So to get this thing to open up, you have to think like whatever created it?" Jolee asked. "A race you tell me was the epitome of the Dark Side?"

"I think that is exactly what it means." I said. "But Revan wasn't evil when she came here. The answers must be something we can give it. Computer, what happens if I do not fit the parameters you have set?"

"This system will lock you out permanently. You will not be able to access any part of my system. However the fact that I have allowed you to access me to this extent means that you have within your mind the necessary thoughts that will fit the parameters."

"Why have I been allowed to access you if I do not fit the parameters?"

"I cannot say. The parameters suggest that you are close enough to norm that you can be coached, and your answers measured against what my designers wanted. This is not the first time such has occurred. The last time was five years ago."

"Revan." I said.

"I cannot say. The parameters of Revan are not within my system. Data has been corrupted, and that information appears to have been in that section of my memory."

"Can you tell me why you are restricted from saying what the parameters are?"

"I cannot speculate on what has been restricted from my memory. The odds that such restrictions were placed by previous users approaches totality."

"So Revan reprogrammed it so only someone who thinks like her can access it." Jolee said.

"Or did she try to make it easier for those that followed? But the machine believes I can think like her." I completed the argument. "Computer, I came to find the Star Map."

"Accessing. There is data on the Star Map in my original memory. Access is restricted."

"What must I do to get access?"

"Your request requires additional security measures. You must match the parameters that have been set to a greater degree."

"How can I match them when I don't even know what they are?"

"There are measures available to this system. Personality profiling can be used to verify the suitability of your conscious mind. This will inform me as to whether you are worthy of accessing the Star Map, and if not, whether you can be made suitable."

"What does that mean?"

"That information is not available. If you have any further questions ask them now. Most of the information you seek will probably not be accessible until behavioral configuration parameters are met."

I sighed. "Begin your evaluation."

"Evaluation commencing. Neural interface established. Results will be compared to the pattern in memory. Relax. Just answer the questions as you feel you should."

It hummed. "You travel with a Wookiee companion. You are captured and separated, charged with a crime. If you both remain silent at your trial, you will both spend a year in jail. However if you accuse Zaalbar of treachery and testify against him, he will serve five years, and you will be set free. He has been offered the same deal. However if you both accuse the other, you will both serve two years. What do you trust him to do?"

_ How did you know I had a Wookiee friend named Zaalbar?_ I almost asked. I knew Zaalbar would be honorable. If I stayed mute we both would serve time-

_No, think as the Builders might. You know the other is honorable, and will never accuse you falsely. Your accusation will trap him for the five years, and you will be free._

"I would accuse Zaalbar." I said. Jolee and Carth gasped.

"Excellent. The temperament of a companion is judged haphazardly at best. You know he is honorable, but you also know that his family has a history of betrayal. Freyyr casting him out on perjured testimony. Chuundar betraying and attempting to murder his father, or have you do it for him. Blood will tell. I judge this to be the correct answer."

"I see what you mean." Jolee said. "This thing obviously has very specific ideas of what a right answer is."

I shook my head. "Continue."

"Hypothetical. You are at war. Your intelligence network deciphers an enemy communication. In five days, they will attack and destroy a city of yours. In ten days, they will be shifting forces to attack in another area, leaving you a clear path of attack that can destroy their center, and end the war. What do you do with this information? What is the optimum course of action?"

Again I considered. If you evacuate without an obvious reason, the enemy would realize that their code is broken. If so, they know that you are aware of the redeployment. You cannot save one without risking the failure of the other. This was actually easier. Canderous had spoken of Revan and some of her battles were in the memory banks aboard ship. "I would ignore the attack on the city. I would prepare for my own attack in ten days."

"Very good. Saving the people of the city would risk the entire war. It would also notify the enemy of the broken codes. The deaths of those people were necessary for victory to be assured."

"The victory is irrelevant!" I said harshly. "Ending the war was more important. That saves even more lives!"

The system hummed. "You have achieved the correct answer, but did so in a manner that does not match the pattern in my memory. However I will adjust both the parameters and the evaluation to compensate.

"Using the same hypothetical situation with one difference. There is no war going on, your have an empire at peace with few weak enemies, but your people have grown complacent. They have stagnated, and in so doing, they question the need for a war leader such as you.

"Except for that change, the scenario remains the same. An imminent attack, but a weakness that will follow it. How do you react?"

_Like the Republic before the Mandalorian attack. _I thought. _Unwilling to stand up for __itself. Had someone in the Republic military seen what was happening, and _allowed _the Mandalorian to attack? _"I do nothing. Afterward I use the information to obliterate them."

"No, you cannot hide behind the wartime morality of allowing a blow so you can strike back. The enemy does not have the capability to maintain a sustained conflict. Your empire would crush it easily in the attack you plan to launch. There is no great war to maintain, nor will you garner victory after victory. Your decision must be based only on the short-term benefits. The reactions of your people to the attack and your retaliation."

_Would it be honorable to allow the murder of millions so you could remain in power? _Again I wondered who might have made such a cold-blooded decision. The Senate's foreign affairs committee had judged the Mandalorian threat as mild. I could almost picture the discussion. _Allowing such an attack into our territory would have cost little and someone would have believed they would benefit._

_ "_I would allow the attack to occur." I heard a startled intake of breath from someone.

"Excellent. It makes the most long-term sense. Your people would forget about the problems your empire might have to turn their eyes on an unfriendly galaxy. As the savior of them in this, you are returned to the pinnacle of honor and respect in their eyes.

"Parameters matched. Accessing all programming."

"Open the Star Map."

"Order received, will comply." The pintel split, and the map gleamed in the air. I copied it into my datapad.

"A Star Map. Any idea who created it?" Jolee asked.

"A race that seems to be extinct for over 30,000 years." I replied.

"Maybe they aren't extinct. Maybe you might need some help out there."

"Oh really. Bored with katarn stew?"

"Shows what you know. You have to bake katarn. You stew Vipers or web-crawlers." She looked at me out of the corner of her eye. "Hey, don't look at me like that! It's not like there's a store nearby for Zabu meat!"

"We have some aboard the ship." Carth said.

"You do! Then just try to get off this planet without me!"

"I think you'll have to take a bath first."

"Bath? Woman do you see a 'fresher down here anywhere?"

"We'll arrange something."

Jolee

I was shocked with the answers Danika gave. But I understood why they had to be correct. The people that had created that long dead empire had not cared about anything but their power. Revan had seen that, and become... what she had become.

We moved through the forest. Four people on a mission to save the Galaxy. But first, we had to save the Wookiee race.

We reached the lift, and half a dozen Wookiee stood from the low-lying mist. Gorwooken growled when he saw Freyyr. "You brought the Mad-claw instead of killing him! We were supposed to kill you, blame the deaths on Czerka, but you have earned death for your betrayal!"

"Betrayal?" Freyyr roared back. "To murder those sent to commit a crime you cannot? To lay the blame on others?"

"Of course." Danika said. "Because Chuundar wants Zaalbar to join him, to make his hold on your people even stronger."

Freyyr waved the blade of Bacca's blade. "I have defeated the Great Beast! I return with Bacca's blade, Gorwooken of no village! Will you defame it?"

"When I return it to Chuundar he will give me honor!" The Wookiee charged.

I stunned a couple as Danika attacked. I watched her as I stunned any that got behind her. She had never used a double blade that I knew of, but she used the double saber like a master. Carth was shooting the Wookiee that tried to close on her and Freyyr, and he was damn good with those pistols.

Freyyr and Gorwooken slammed together like runaway lifters, and I swear the ground shook when they did. Freyyr used one hand to pin Gorwooken's sword, and used the silent blade of Bacca's sword to smash in his head. He spun, grabbing another Wookiee that came at him, catching him in a bear hug. He might have been old, but he was still strong. The Wookiee struggled, pounding his head with his hands, then spasmed as his back snapped. Freyyr tossed him aside.

The others were all down. Danika stood, ready. Eyes sweeping to find more, but no one else attacked us.

"Come. The lift is made so someone with a Wookiee's strength must lift it. I will bear us back to the Great Walkway." Freyyr ordered.

We got onto the lift, and it went upward through the gloom. Our party rested as we went up. Danika stood silent off to the side. I could see that coming up with the right answers bothered her even more than they had bothered me. Carth was watching her as if he thought she would suddenly become a katarn.

The upper walkway was silent when we arrived. "We must hurry-" A form came from the gloom, another Wookiee.

"Freyyr! You live and without a collar?" The Wookiee asked.

"Chorrawl!" Freyyr hugged the other Wookiee. "What are you doing here?"

"I was told to kill whoever came up if they were not Gorwooken and those that went with him. Chuundar said that the Czerka were planning an ambush."

"The Czerka ambush was Gorwooken and his followers." Freyyr answered. This one, the one I have named Shrromarrik brought me back from the brink of madness. Returned to us Bacca's blade." He waved it. "This I took from the flesh of the Great Beast myself after killing it, as Honor demands."

"Freyyr." Chorrawl knelt. "Lead us, My chieftain."

"I cannot lead until the Lawgiver judges this case." Freyyr answered almost gently. Does Worrroznor still hold the mantle?"

"Yes. But Chuundar merely waits until he gets too old. He has chosen Gorwooken to take it when Worrroznor dies."

"Then he will have to choose another. Come. Chorrawl, precede me. Assure that all of those that still honor my name are ready."

"Wait." Danika said. "It sounds like you are getting ready to attack!"

"It may come to that." Freyyr replied sadly. "Our history has had many times when the leader was not accepted automatically. If Chuundar can call his allies, they will fight to keep him on the throne. Add to that the fact that he will call the Czerkas as well-"

"Freyyr!" Chorrawl shouted. He ran down the walkway, and came back dragging a human in a Czerka uniform. The man was unconscious, but not dead. "This one was using his com. The Czerka will know that you return."

"Then you must run, Chorrawl. Gather them as I have commanded. Have Worrroznor present. We must deal with this quickly."

We moved fast. On their com links, Danika and Carth could hear frantic orders being given. There was a roar like the hammer of the gods from the area where the Czerka maintained order.

"Canderous, report!" Danika shouted.

"The Czerkas thought they could try the same trick again. They sent a dozen of their men to board the ship to arrest us for complicity in a native revolt. They also brought their lifters back out. That was me blowing them to dust. We have prisoners aboard right now. Bastila wants to talk with you."

"Put her on."

"Danika, report please."

"We have the Star Map data, but we've walked right into a civil war. Zaalbar's father is alive and was chief before Chuundar. Chuundar has called for reinforcements from Czerka to maintain his power."

"Not good. I felt pain in you earlier."

"Either the builders or Revan set the damn alien computer with parameters only she or a Sith could pass. Lucky for me, I was a soldier. I got through it. How are things at that end?"

"Canderous was able to destroy the guns, and take the ones who tried to board us without undue casualties. The Czerka officials are staying away from us. They seem to think we'll start blasting if they try anything. Hold please for Canderous."

"Go ahead."

"A lot of chatter on the company net. They're trying to convince the cargo ship _Czerka Dream _to make an attack run on us. Carth's pal Jordo has reported that he was able to spike their guns."

"Maintain alert. If Jordo reports that they have gotten the systems operational I want the _Ebon Hawk _airborne where she will be safe."

"We can take off now. I've checked the specs of _Czerka Dream_. I could beat them with Zaalbar's breath."

"You're our tactical officer, you're in command. Do what you think needs to be done. But don't destroy that ship! They have Wookiee aboard, and when this is over, I think they will want to come home."

"Understood." There was a scream of engines a few moments later.

There were bodies scattered around the entry into the village. But Chorrawl was among those who stood there. One of the Wookiee was an ancient, his fur a deep brown laced with white as if he had been dipped in silver paint. He looked at Freyyr, then at me.

"It is good to see that you still live, Freyyr. Yet you come bearing weapons, followed by out worlders. How say you in this?"

"Speaker of the law, I ask your attention and your wisdom." Freyyr asked, kneeling.

"Speak."

"My son has taken the throne by lies and deceit. He sells our people into slavery and uses Czerka and our own warriors to oppress our neighbors. He sits there without this." He set down the blade he had gained. "He claims to be our leader with false pretenses, and uses out worlders as his supporters."

"As do you, Freyyr." Worrroznor replied, looking at us.

"No. These are my companions, as Bacca had when he first found the blade that bears his name. They have sworn to me of their own will in the words of that time, and fight not for me, but for the honor of our race. This one," He motioned toward Danika, "I have named Shrromarrik because it was her words that brought me back from the brink of madness."

Worrroznor looked at Danika. "Do you understand the honor Freyyr has bestowed upon you out worlder?"

Danika knelt beside Freyyr. "As Bacca's companions did, so I have done. I swore my service to Freyyr, the true and honorable chieftain of your people. To save your race from slavery, I will die. To guide my life with honor I have begged of him. He has accepted this oath. Can you gainsay it?" Carth knelt, as did I.

Worrroznor bowed his head. "You have humbled me, the speaker of the law with your wisdom. I am astonished to know that an out-worlder knows so much of our lives and traditions." He turned to the others. "Go before us; push all those that would refuse ahead of you. The law will be spoken this day, even if our village dies."


	18. Kashyyyk: Revolution

Danika

The unaligned people of Rwookrrorro stood aside as we entered. I could hear Freyyr's name whispered as we passed. Those that would have stopped us were either pushed ahead by our vanguard, or died when they refused to listen to Worrroznor. The throne room was blocked by a group of not only Wookiee but Czerka as well. We dealt with them, and pushed our way inside.

Chuundar sat on his throne, surrounded by both Wookiee and Czerka allies. I saw the chief of Czerka Security standing to the side, his hand on his com.

"Well, Father and brother have both returned. We have a family reunion!" Chuundar said. Then he motioned at me. "I think this is your business, Commander Velek."

"Danika Wordweaver, I arrest you for complicity in a native revolt against Czerka Corporation-"

"Silence, Human." Worrroznor growled. "You have told us constantly to stay out of your affairs, and you would return the favor. This is an internal matter of the Wookiee of Rwookrrorro. You have no authority here."

"That woman is a criminal-"

"That woman has been named Shrromarrik by Freyyr, once our chieftain, and perhaps soon to be again. She is Wookiee under our laws, which you ignore at your peril."

"But I set the laws of my village, Worrroznor!" Chuundar roared. "I am chieftain here! Not you, Law-speaker!"

Worrroznor gave him a pitying look. "The Law-Speaker bows to none save the laws of our people. It is he that determines right and wrong. The chieftain is he who commands his people within that law. He is also the one who holds Bacca's blade, Chuundar. So it has been since we first moved from being animals." Freyyr held up the blade. There was a sigh among the gathered Wookiee.

"So he had the blade. I have the hilt!" Chuundar pulled it out, brandishing it. "Both you and this creature that was my father said it was important! Who will the people follow, father? You, an old and weak leader? Or me, with the might of a Galactic corporation behind me?"

"Enough!" Zaalbar stepped from a corner. "Both of you are fighting over who sits in the chair? The people of our village, of our planet deserve better!"

"Listen to your other son, Freyyr." Chuundar purred. "If you win our village will be gutted, ripe for another to take us over."

"Zaalbar..." I said.

"He has been speaking with me since you left, Danika Wordweaver. Much of what he says makes sense."

"Sense? To sell others, even of other tribes into slavery? To use them," I waved toward the Czerka, "To tell you what to do? They must discuss this, let the law decide what is right."

"The law!" Chuundar laughed. "I am the law! And Czerka agrees with me." He stood, towering over me. "Attack!"

I spun, and Commander Velek went down. It was a madhouse in the close quarters. A dozen Wookiee all told fighting each other, and any Czerkas that were wise diving for cover. Those that were not wise tried to shoot at those who supported Freyyr. They went down in a welter of blood. It was heavy blaster cannon at five paces, and only someone who was lucky or very fast was going to survive.

Chuundar was backed into a corner, and he was screaming for his supporters outside to rally to his defense. But outside the fight was also total. None could force themselves to his side. He drew a Sith Assassin's pistol, and aimed it at Freyyr.

I saw a shape flash, and Worrroznor was there. The blast took him in the stomach, and he collapsed as Freyyr caught his son by the throat. That one shot stopped the fight as if he had flipped a switch.

"Freyyr, no." Worrroznor gasped.

"Listen to him, Freyyr!" I shouted.

The Wookiee growled, throwing Chuundar into the arms of his supporters as the fighting died. Everyone was astonished by Chuundar's attack on the law-speaker.

"Worrroznor. You will live." Freyyr said, holding the ancient in his arms.

"No, Freyyr." He gasped. "Even the mighty Freyyr cannot stop the Black Wook from collecting me. "But this must end, as the law requires."

"Don't speak to me of law when my best friend lies dying!"

"Freyyr." The ancient shook his head. "The law is what makes us beings, and not animals. I will speak the law even as the Black Wook comes for me. Will you hear me?"

Freyyr bowed his head. "Yes, old friend. I will."

"You are our rightful chief. Chuundar has broken the law in that he has allowed out-worlders to determine our policy and ways of life." He reached out toward me, and I took his hand. "You, Shrromarrik have a duty to the people you have sworn to protect. Another Law Speaker will be appointed in my place, but you must speak for the law until that time. Freyyr needs advice of your world beyond our trees, and none of us can give such. Will you accept this charge?" He squeezed my hand.

"I am not worthy of this responsibility."

He chuckled. "Was I when it was handed to me? Only in dealing with the out-worlders will he need your advice. Guide him." He squeezed my hand, then I felt it go limp.

I lifted it to my cheek, looking at him. "I will give him good words within the law." I promised.

"Hah! So an out worlder will seal my fate!" Chuundar shouted. "After all of your words on it, Father, that is rich!"

"No I will not." I stood away from Freyyr, away from Worrroznor's body. "I will not judge you under your laws. The one who is appointed in his place will." I waved toward the body. "He asked me only to guide the Chief in the laws of his kind." I waved toward the body of Velek. "That I can do."

"Yes." Freyyr stood away from his friend, catching his son in one great paw. "He has murdered the law speaker, tried to use out-worlders to control our village, spat on our laws. Does any stand with him on this?" He turned, but no one stepped forward in Chuundar's defense.

"Then I shall use his own methods to deal with him." He waved and walked from the room. The guards dragged Chuundar to the netting that separated the village from the forest beyond. Freyyr loosened a section, taking his son by his throat. "I exile you. Return when you have gathered enough honor to wash this stain clean."

"Father please-"

"I have no sons! One was exiled, and awaits my judgment on his return. The other starts his journey as an exile this day." He flung the boy out into space. They watched him fall.

"He might live." I commented.

"If he has the brain and heart my blood gives him, he will. But he must cleanse himself before he returns. That He might fail in."

I spent the next hours saying no. Like the Republic Senate, it isn't the one who is right that gains the day; it's the one who screams loudest. "Freyyr we cannot merely kill all of the out worlders-"

"They have battened on my people long enough-"

"Will you listen?" I roared. Freyyr took a step back. I moderated my tone. "The Galaxy will awake tomorrow with this world in your hands. Do you want them cheering as Czerka comes in to slaughter you?" He stared at me. "The news that the revolt has started is already going out. There is no way to avoid this. Czerka, would have tried to conceal it but there are enough ships of independent merchants and those Companies not linked to the Corporation with hololinks they can't control. So instead they will try to use your actions to condemn, make you look like animals slaughtering, maybe even devouring their people.

"So you must give orders that any that fight you, that any that attack you, will die. If they do not, if they are wounded and disarmed, if they surrender, if they try to run, you must let them. You must also announce that this is what you have said.

"You must assure that all who fight alongside you will accept this, and the same rule must be used for every Czerka outpost. You must also punish publicly those that violate this order."

"But-"

"But nothing! When the Galaxy reads their news tomorrow and in the coming weeks, they must see a people forced to fight. That killed the enemy that faced them, that killed those that attacked them, but showed mercy to all others.

"It is hard to make the Wookiee evil when they see pictures of your people helping out worlders in maintaining order. When they see the abject misery of those freed from _Czerka Dream_, and their return to Kashyyyk, they must say to themselves, 'good for the Wookiee!'."

Those pictures were already being broadcast. _Czerka Dream _had been designed for rough world cargoes where pirates or natives might raid or try to capture them. But she had little firepower compared to _Ebon Hawk_. Canderous had boarded them, taken the entire crew captive, and used shuttles to return freed Wookiee slaves to the planet. Among them had been several hundred slaves of other races. The scenes with Wookiee removing their collars, then carrying humans and Twi-lek among others from their servitude had already made waves in the Republic.

There was already a dozen different news services vying for the inside story. I had yet to get to a proper communication facility, but Canderous had set both Komad Fortuna and Dayso Cooh on it. They had broadcast pictures of the tach, showing people drinking Tarisian ale, then the gentle creatures that gave the beverage its kick. This was followed by Czerka's own recordings of the hunts.

Komad had found something better than hunting. It was called revolution. Dayso Cooh needed restraining. He was talking of 'people's court's and rough justice.'

"It is unacceptable!" One of his councilors roared.

"Then kill me now." I snarled back. He took a step back. "Kill all of my crew but Zaalbar!"

"But you are Shrromarrik! You are as Wook as I!"

"Most of those who you would kill swore no allegiance that linked to slavery. They were looking for work of their hands. They joined Czerka for work, nothing more. They wear the uniform, but they are innocent of wrong doing. Some are not even linked to Czerka, they are merchants that came for goods Czerka made from your world, or to run the shops.

"Those that took your people, that put collars on them, that used the pain boxes on your people, that sold your people into slavery, they are the enemy. They must die if they fight you. If you would start killing those not of your race begin now with me!"

The one arguing with me backed away, bending low to show he was not a threat.

"It is agreed. Is there anything else we must do before we attack?" Freyyr asked sarcastically.

"Yes. You must first deal with your son."

Freyyr growled. He walked over to Zaalbar. As an exile he could not be part of the war council of the last hours. Instead he had been working on Bacca's blade. When we came to him, he flicked the switch, and the blade came to life. He shut it off, and held it out with his eyes down.

"My son, I have shamed myself in this. I believed what I was told, not what was true. I cast you out, made two decades misery without thinking." He reached past the blade, touching his son's head. "I have no excuse."

"I still forgive, Father." Zaalbar answered his eyes still down. "I learned a great deal in the outside world. A lot of what Danika tells you now I know to be true from seeing them."

"You and she have put into my people the backbone we needed. I will erase the slavers from this world. None of ours will ever go into that again as long as I live.

"I have sent quick climbers to the other villages. They took apologies from me for what Chuundar has done to them, and asked for them to ally themselves with us against Czerka." He grunted a laugh. "My other son could have made himself ruler of the planet if he has merely said 'fight against them' instead of letting Czerka have their way. Out-worlders shall be rare here for a time, but knowing such as this one lives makes me happy to be part of the galaxy.

"But I owe you for all that time, Zaalbar. For what I did in error." He turned, opening the door. "Hear me! Zaalbar has returned to us, for his sin was actually the doing of Chuundar by his own admission! He is once more a member of our tribe and my family. And no one would make me more proud than what I received in return for that act!" He turned to his son. "There is a place by my side, soon to sit upon that throne if you are worthy." It is hard to describe a Wookiee voice as plaintive, but Freyyr's was.

"I thank you my father." He stood, and for the first time looked his father in the eye again. "I have learned much in the galaxy beyond, not all of it good, not all of it light. I must say no to you father. I cannot return home yet."

"My son!' Freyyr wailed. "What must I do to atone?"

"My father you have accepted me back and that I will treasure for the rest of my life! But I have sworn a life debt to Danika. I must pay that back before I can return home!"

"How can family claim life debt from family?" Freyyr demanded. My crew and I had been declared part of Freyyr's honor family. We were Wookiee in all but flesh. Plus I still held the title of Shrromarrik and was being called 'Human law speaker' even by the children. I could see his point.

"Zaalbar-"

"Please, Shrromarrik." He said to me gently. "That is true father, but I gave that life debt, and there is the mission our Shrromarrik must complete. I cannot in honor foreswear that. Even to return home. And as she is of our people now, that debt looms larger, for family must always be ready to protect their own."

Freyyr cried. "You see this? I bowed to your wisdom Shrromarrik, now I must bow to the wisdom of my own son! The Galaxy shall know that Wookiee can judge in faith and honor. Go with my blessing. But before you leave, we owe you Shrromarrik, Danika Wordweaver, much honor. We shall sing songs of you and what you have done until the lights in the sky grow cold. But if there is anything we have that you desire, ask for it."

I was stumped. What could I ask for that I needed?

Again Zaalbar interrupted. "Father I would ask one thing. Let me use Bacca's sword. It came from out there before we were people. Let it draw blood of the enemies of all people everywhere!"

"That seems fitting." I said.

"I am tempted to say no, my son. But I owe a debt to you and her. You know what you ask. Chieftains of our clan have held it since Bacca found it. Do you know what you ask?"

"I do father. The Wookiee cannot think of this one world any more. We are part of a galaxy of worlds and people who think of Wookiee and pictures a slave. We must teach them otherwise."

"Yes my son. Take it. Make the world's tremble at Wookiee wisdom and strength." He passed the precious relic to his son, who bowed low.

"I will, father. And it will return, whether I do or not."

"I would much rather my son and heir return. Guard him well, Shrromarrik!"

"I will."

Against any other enemy, the Czerka defenses of walls and auto turrets might have worked. But as Jolee had pointed out, they had made a fatal blunder. The Wookiee knew how those guns worked and how to disable them. The Wookiee were also as comfortable climbing as they were walking, and netting will not stop a determined Wookiee.

We reached the gate. The guns tracked on us, but did not fire. Beyond the door carnage began. Wookiee had climbed over, eliminating the guards on it, then used the guard officer's own control box to deactivate the weapons.

I ran up to a cowering guard, slapping aside the bowcaster of a young Wookiee. "He's wounded! He's unarmed. He is to live!'

"Who-" Zaalbar slapped him hard enough to bounce him off the tree trunk.

"I am Zaalbar, son of Freyyr, and this is my Shrromarrik 'Human law speaker'!"

"Forgive, noble ones." He ducked his head. "It is the excitement of finally striking back."

I bent to the Czerka. He was pinning a rag to a spurting wound, and I pulled a med-kit from my pack. I cleaned and bandaged the wound, then handed him the injector of painkillers. "Lay quiet. They'll come for you."

"Why?" He almost screamed. All he saw behind me were Wookiee faces, the stuff of nightmares at the moment. "So they can cook me?"

"No. How long have you been on Kashyyyk?"

"A week!"

"The Wookiee will not eat you. I just hope the clinic wasn't caught in the fighting." I pulled him from the area where he'd stuffed himself, and pointed at the young Wookiee. "Carry him."

The Wookiee slung his weapon, and gently picked up the unbelieving man. "I know where the clinic is. I will take him there."

There were still knots of fighting. When possible, I called for them to surrender. However at one such, the leader of the men within fired at me. The Wookiee overwhelmed the men, throwing their bodies off the walkway.

_Ebon Hawk _was landing as my team came up to it, and we hurried aboard. Carth's friend Jordo had delivered the information he had promised.

Carth

I ran to the berthing area as we came aboard. I had to soak my head. I stood there, water dripping off me. My mind was still reeling from what had happened in the Shadowlands. Danika had answered the computer, but the answers disturbed me. Betray your friend, allow millions to die in an attack you could have stopped so that you could win a war? Allow the same millions to die just to bolster your power? Saul had made these kinds of decisions. Malak had destroyed Taris, slaughtered off billions of people in the name of his power.

If she could be like Saul, like Malak, like Revan, I wasn't even sure I wanted to see her! I dried my hair and face. I wanted a stiff drink but we had to get out of the system first. I decided I'd settle for a cup of tea. I poured, sipping the acrid brew, then turned to head toward the cockpit, and stopped.

Danika sat at the table. She was hunched over a mug, hands clenched so tightly I expected it to shatter. Her eyes were closed, and silent tears coursed down her face. Sasha was sitting beside her and crooning gently at the obvious pain on her guardian's face.

"You're disappointed." Her voice was a husky whisper. I said nothing.

"Whoever programmed the computer knew what kind of person they trusted. They wanted people like the Dark Jedi, like the Sith to find them. I understood that when it told me that there were specific parameters to match."

"Revan must have-"

"No. I can't see someone everyone admired that much giving such answers without realizing why they were correct. The programming had to have been original. But what could I do?

"If I gave answers I felt right, it would have locked me out, we would have been stopped without the Star Map. So, I did what I had to do. Think like a conqueror, like a Sith." She looked up at me. There was no emotion in her face or her voice. As if the tears were just water splashed on her face. "Do you know why the answers I gave were correct?" I shook my head. "Because the builders were self-centered egoists that didn't care about their own people let alone any others. Any other Jedi, even a Master would have failed. Only she and I could do it.

"Because I was a soldier as she was! You served. You know what the mindset is like. How many orders have we given that sent others to their deaths? Because the mission was more important than their lives." She set down the cup hard. "I was a squad leader for a little over a month. I sent others to their deaths so we could win the battle. I left three men I considered my best friends in the world to hold a corridor so we could do an end run around the defenders to the bridge. Only one of them lived. Lived!"

She slammed her fist on the table hard enough to hurt. "He's in a life support chair now, a quadriplegic. He'll never walk, or play with his children, or make love to his wife. He can't even have enough control to touch her! My orders did that! I did everything but pull the trigger myself!

"I must speak with the masters on Dantooine. If I am no better than Revan, no better than Malak, no better than Saul, we've already failed."

"I served with Saul, and I can tell you you're nothing like him." She started to speak. "Shut up and listen for once. Looking back at him, I knew Saul was ruthless. I watched him on the bridge of the ship and he never flinched. Even when his orders fed ship after ship into the meat grinder. When he was in command as captain, then as admiral, he never settled for a stalemate. It was victory or nothing.

"Now let's see you in comparison. A woman that worries constantly because I don't trust her. Yet when someone needed money, you gave it to him. When we had to go into the Undercity of Taris, you gave those kids money. I would have shoved them aside. You went to rescue Zaalbar because you hate slavers. Oh yes, I saw your face when you heard who had him. Then you turned around and instead of collecting a reward, you pushed Zelka Forn into making sure the people down there were safe for the first time from the Rakghoul plague.

"Look at us!" I waved toward the ship. "You risked your life bringing Juhani back from the dark side. You brought closure to Bastila, to Mission, to Zaalbar. You talked instead of fighting with the Sand People. Got them vaporators so they could move in peace. You freed the Jawa. Maybe you failed in ending that war, but you mitigated it. Would Saul do that? We know what Malak would have done." I shook my head.

"If you want to judge yourself, answer this question. Hypothetical. You command a fleet. Someone you hate and fear is hiding down on a planet among billions of innocent civilians. You can keep on searching, even though you have spent almost a week looking. You can go down yourself, hoping that you enemy will be drawn out to attack you, or you can reduce the planet along with all of those people to ruins. Along with that you will kill a few thousand of your own, but what's a few more lives tossed in?"

I was starting to feel a bit teary myself. I remembered all of those people. Zelka, Gadon, the Outcasts, the people in the street of the upper city. Were they all dead now? Everyone in the upper city most assuredly. I pictured Zelka Forn standing there, unwilling to leave his patients as the plasma ate the city away around them.

The only home Mission had ever known, gone.

I walked over, laying my hand on her shoulder. "I trust from what I have seen that you would have found another way. Maybe not a perfectly clean way, but one where billions didn't have to die." She looked up from the mug. "If I can trust you, why can't you trust yourself?"

"I feel the pull of the dark side." She whispered. "It would have been so easy to just let the Wookiee have their revenge in full. There are over 100,000 of them still out there enslaved. If I could I would have published all those names, those owners, called the wrath of all of the Gods of all of the races on them." She stared at the mug again. "It would be so easy to get this done the quick way."

"I can't see you doing anything the easy way. I think you were probably the best person for this mission. Someone so unsure of themselves that they second-guess everything. If you can't succeed, no one could."

She shook her head. Sasha moved toward her, and she hugged the girl. "Thanks Carth."

"That's what I'm here for. When I'm not slaving away on the controls, I'm the head cheerleader of the good ship _Ebon Hawk_." I walked toward the cockpit.

"Carth." I turned back to her. "Watch me. Don't trust me. If I start to slip to the dark side, you'll tell me right? Stop me in any way you can?"

"If I have to die in the attempt."

"Don't let it get to that point." She looked away. "Set course for Manaan. It's closer than Korriban. I'm sorry."

_Ebon Hawk_

Enroute to Manaan

Bastila

I could feel her misery even before we took off. But I had to wait until Carth relieved me. Danika was sitting in the mess hall in her own huddle of misery. Sasha was in her arms, crooning as Danika cried.

"I don't want to become like that." Danika whispered. She looked at me, eyes luminous with tears. I wanted to go to her, to hug her, to tell her it would be all right. As she had done for Mission, as she had done for me. "I want to go back to Dantooine. Beg the Masters to send someone else."

"You are strong, Danika." I said. "You have resisted the dark side so well. Don't give up now."

"I don't know if I can be strong enough any more." She husked. "What if there is another test when we reach Manaan? What if I have to kill a companion, or do something that will damn me for all time? Revan must have been stronger than I. Yet she fell!"

"Revan was strong but in her own way." I replied. "She was also more impulsive than you are."

"I found out some things about Revan. We picked up a passenger at Kashyyyk. An old man named Jolee Bindo."

Of all people! "Yes, I have heard of him. Where is he?"

"I don't know. He said something about getting a bath and some decent food."

"Well what you need to do is go into the crew compartment and meditate. You will feel better after that."

"Maybe." She looked down at Sasha. "Want to come meditate?" The little girl slipped off her lap, taking her by the hand, and dragging her toward the crew quarters. I sighed, then went to find Jolee.

He was in the men's crew compartment, in the 'fresher, singing. What is it about running water that makes people think they can sing? I sighed again, and leaned against a wall waiting. He stepped out, a large rugged man with a fringe of white hair, rubbing his head with a towel. He saw me, and the towel went from his head to his crotch so fast I almost believed in teleportation. "I thought there were 'freshers on the other side for the women."

"There are." I told him. "I had to see you about Danika."

"Danika. You know-"

"Yes. I know who she is." I took a holocron from my pouch, and handed it to him. "View that."

He knotted the towel around his waist, and activated the Holocron. I stood there as he watched it.

"Damn fools on the Council. Why are they surprised?"

"They didn't anticipate what would happen. Now we must complete this mission. I will need your help."

"Why? She seems to be doing pretty good so far."

"But she feels that she is weakening. I will need your help to bolster her self-confidence."

'Why? No one thought I was worth the effort way back when."

"Jolee that was almost twenty years ago. I only remember you because your departure was still a subject of talk. Your leaving was more fun than the apprentices had in a decade Rather loud fun as I recall the stories."

"Yeah. Because she was one of my best students, and they didn't like my teaching style."

"For her sake that must be put behind us. Will you help?"

He stared at the holocron, and his voice was soft. "Yeah. I can't let them screw it up again."

_Ebon Hawk_

Enroute to Manaan

Danika

I felt much better after meditating. I showered with Sasha. Now that she had accepted us, being close no longer bothered her. I dressed, and had her put on some of the clothes we had gotten for her on Tatooine. It was funny really. Most of the people there didn't have children, so the shops didn't carry a lot of children's clothes. We had to fill out her wardrobe from a Jawa kiosk. Seeing that earnest little face thrust out of a Jawa hood was funny. Kashyyyk had shops and we had gotten her more clothes, but those Jawa robes were still her favorite.

I stepped into the mess hall, and felt a wave of fury from Juhani's quarters. I walked over, reaching out, and she spun. "Don't touch me!"

"Juhani. What is wrong?"

She hissed, standing from her crouch with a visible effort to control herself. "I never told you where I came from, where I spent my childhood, did I?"

"No, you didn't."

"Maybe it was because I wanted to deny my feelings. To let it all pass away unnoticed. But I find I cannot. Someone must be to blame. Someone must atone for it!"

"Juhani-"

"Taris! I was raised on Taris! Someone is responsible for the destruction of everything I knew before I was eleven years old! You and Bastila are to blame! If you had not gone there, evaded the Sith, they would have had no reason to destroy the planet!"

I was stunned. "I'm sorry, Juhani, I didn't know."

"Didn't know what?" She growled. "That the people there were going to die? That Malak would destroy them when he couldn't capture you? That I heard you and Carth discussing what happened as if it were a party you had both been to where someone accidentally knocked over the punch bowl?"

"Juhani-"

"Just let me vent my anger! Allow me that little bit of feeling!" She raised her hand, and her claws extended and retracted. "I hated that place! Yet everything about me was formed there. Every breath I take every step in the ship's gravity or any other planet reminds me that this is not home! Now all I have is an aching void where all of that was. And in that void, I see your face!"

"Juhani, do you think Malak would not have destroyed that world any way? Since he lost the controlling influence of Revan he had destroyed two worlds so far. I want you to believe me that if I had known Malak was that much of a madman, I would have turned myself over to them before the first Tarisian died. I am not worthy of such a sacrifice."

"I know that. I know your heart, Danika. You would have died instead. But it is so hard, to have your entire past wiped away by a callous hand."

"I can't know it, Juhani. Come, tell me of Taris."

"There is so much we must do-"

"No. At the moment, there is nothing more important than Taris, and your feelings."

She sighed, the anger drained away. "It was a horrible place to live. Especially for non-humans. We were relegated to the Lowercity where the elite would not have to acknowledge our existence. Living in perpetual shadow, living off the refuse cast down from above. Working at menial labor because there was nothing else for us."

"How did you survive?"

"It was a never-ending struggle. My family fought for every scrap to put on the table, to buy what was needed. But it was never enough. Taxes from the government that gave us nothing back. Fees charged by the Swoop Gangs to walk the very streets. Every credit saved from milli-creds to pay for food, clothing, and medicine.

"And always the hatred from those above. Bigotry made policy. When problems would occur, the media would automatically blame the 'creatures' that live below. Lording it over all with their wealth and power.

"Sometimes they would tour the Lowercity as if it were a petting zoo. Laughing behind their hands at the 'animals' that lived in the squalor they created." She looked miserable, remembering. "But I found that some humans were not that way. There was a Swoop leader that had just taken over, Gadon Thek-"

"He was alive, fighting the Sith in a running battle in the Undercity when we left."

She smiled. "If it is the same Thek I remembered, they may have destroyed the planet just to defeat him! There were others as well. Humans that seemed to embody the idea of Humanity." She smiled. "Like the Jedi."

"The one that sent you to the order?"

"No, she could not send me. They had only the ships bound for the front. They could not spare one to take a mere slip of a girl back. But she told me to find the Jedi Academies. Gave me a token to use to show to her teacher, master Vandar. Filled my head with a world that wasn't hatred and shame. I can almost see her face in yours when I look at you." She shook her head. "I wish my parents had never fled to Taris."

"Fled?"

"A story for another time. I think Zaalbar is making some Merdai stew for those with iron stomachs."

_Ebon Hawk_

Enroute to Manaan

Canderous

I found that I had missed the Story circle of home more than I would have admitted to someone not of my clans. Zaalbar had made Merdai stew for some of us, with a milder form for the rest. I was not surprised when Danika and Sasha got bowls of it. Danika would have been Mando's if she had been born right, and Sasha had learned. What did surprise me was the old man Jolee. He filled his bowl dumped _Tracyn Cadir_ pipalli steeped in tihaar, literally 'fire sauce' on it then almost inhaled it rather than chewing. He filled his bowl again, and this vanished almost as fast.

"Real food again!" He said. Sasha watched him, as if afraid he would inhale her next. He looked at me, leaning back from the table. "You're a big one! What clan?"

"Ordo of Clan Ordo."

"Ah. I fought one of your ancestors. A guy named Ramius."

"You fought Ramius Ordo?" I looked at him. "You don't look to be a hundred years old."

"Well my age is unimportant. There was a siege before the Sith wars. Your people had landed on a planet named Costigain, and I was sent to negotiate. It came down to adverse discussions-"

"Adverse discussions?" Carth asked.

"Talking with our lightsabers instead of with our mouths." Jolee replied. "Of course this was supposed to be a 'peaceful' negotiation, so the only weapons in the room were fists. Well anyway I think it was someone getting angry on the settler side and defaming Ramius' mother-"

"She died when he was a child. A settler on Subreka shot her from ambush then desecrated her body." I said.

"That would explain why he was so upset. There was only one other Jedi with me, and we had to carry the brunt of the fight. Anyway Ramius beat his way through the others, and saw me. 'You pup! Now you die!' he shouted.

"Well I was a spry one. I finally beat him by bouncing around the room like a demented droid, until he finally fell so exhausted that he could barely breath. I bounced back, disarmed him, then hauled him over my lap spanked him like a ten year old misbehaving."

"You didn't!" Mission said, giggling.

"Yep I did. Shocked the Mandalorians into stopping. Then I dragged that loudmouth over, and whaled the tar out of him too. Almost made the both of them stand in a corner holding hands the rest of the day."

"Now I know you're telling tales." Carth said. He looked at me, and looked confused.

I laughed. No one had ever told that story from the other side before. I had heard it when the ancient Ramius had a little too much to drink. It was at once the high point and low point of his career as a warrior. "It happened just that way." I gasped.

"Tell us more about Revan." Danika asked.

"We fought the Republic over the course of many battle. At the start, they weren't much of a threat. The commanding officers were hesitant and tended to either attack down obvious junctions, or run when they actually found us ready to fight. Oh some were good. Admirals Karath and Dodonna come to mind. But then Revan took command, and things changed.

"The fleets began actually using tactics. Pincer movements mass deceptions, Revan was an acknowledged master when it came to feinting then slamming us to the ground. She abandoned worlds that had little or nothing to defend, using the weapons and ships to make planets we had to capture impregnable. She sacrificed a dozen ships in a feint to draw out our forces in one battle so she could crush one of our fleets against them. She knew how to take risks. I hear she had a way of questioning her commanders. She would pose a hypothetical question, and judge what they should do from the answer.

"We captured a Republic General, and he told us about that. 'You're in a small ship, a snub fighter. There is an asteroid, and you know it will hit a planet of ten billion people, and kill them. There are no other ships in the system, and the planet has no defenses.

" 'Your guns and missiles would be worthless; the only weapon you have is the ship you are flying. If you ram your ship into the asteroid, it will be obliterated, and you will die. But if you do no one will ever know what happened to you. The people you die for are unknown to you. Or you can call them and try to warn them. All they can look forward to is a horrible wait as they die. Or you can ignore the rock. No one will ever know that you did, and they will die unawares'.

"We listened; the riddle is a masterpiece if you think about it. You can tell what the man might do in other situations from it. One of our interrogators asked him what he answered. 'I asked her to repeat it. She sent me here'. He didn't understand why we laughed so hard. He was assigned to a supply depot on an unprotected planet, with few troops.

"What would you have done Danika?"

She sipped her tea. "Activated my emergency transponder, aimed at the meteor, and ejected before the ship hit it."

"Why eject?" Canderous asked.

"Dying would be pointless. If I failed, I can die in shame waiting. If I succeeded, I know I would die at peace."

"Something Revan would have approved of." Canderous said. "In the end Revan proved too much for us."

"You couldn't have won against the entire Galaxy!" Carth said.

"True." I admitted. "But it was so close. It looked like the entire galaxy was in our grasp! Then Revan seized Malachor. It would have destroyed our society if we let it pass.

"We laughed. The fleet she had there was half the size of the one we had routed already, and we could crush it easily. Over seven hundred Mandalorian ships charged toward a 20th that number. We tasted victory. Then she sprung the trap. Five fleets came out of hyperspace behind us. Almost a thousand ships now faced us and the asteroids trapped our fleet in normal space." I looked from face to face.

"It wasn't your ideals that defeated us that day. Not your men or your ships or your 'fight for freedom' that stopped us there. It was one thing. Revan. She out-thought our best; she stood on a ship being pulverized by our fleet, and calmly directed the other ships in decimating us. Less than thirty of our ships broke free. Mand'alor had to order that retreat himself. No one would have dared to give such an order except for him. But we didn't have the strength any longer to resist her advances.

"But you were losing? Why didn't you retreat?" Danika asked.

"It is what we had wanted all along. We wanted to fight a battle against the best the Republic had to offer. A battle that would be remembered throughout history. We got what we wanted.

"What was left of the fleet fell back on our home world. The largest of them was the captured cruiser _Vikrant_, Mand'alor's flagship.

"Then their ships came. Hundreds of them. We braced for an attack that didn't come. Then there was a broadcast. Revan in that battle-mask she wore. 'I am Revan Chadar Bai Echani. I challenge Mand'alor to personal combat. Let none interfere'." I looked at them. "You see she understood our people better than anyone else we had ever fought, except for Marai Devos. She knew that a personal challenge must be answered. And if she won, she would, under our law become Mand'alor, and could order us as did all of those through our history.

"_Vikrant _surged forward, and from their fleet came a ship of the same class. I think it was named _Harvest Moon_-"

"_Tik-harvest Moon_." Carth corrected.

"Yes. The ships went to a small moon, where the battle would take place. Revan defeated Mand'alor as if he were a child.

"Then the broadcast was repeated through the system. 'As the canons require, I have defeated Mand'alor. I stand as Mand'alor now. Does any gainsay my ascension?'

"None could. She had won, and our laws were clear. She ordered us to return to our home worlds, and followed us there. When we arrived, she ordered any ships larger than a customs craft abandoned, and they were taken. Republic troops came down, and under her orders all of our heavy weapons, droids, and all combat equipment that was not personal property were destroyed.

"Then she had our troops marshaled. 'Thanks to those who claim your blood but not your honor, your people for a time will have no honor. Until such time as I release you from this, no honor may be gained. Live with your dishonor. I will not accept honor-death. Those that choose that way to atone go into the darkness bereft. I your Mand'alor have spoken.'. For some that hurt even more. It has always been our way that if you cannot have honor in life, you can gain it in death by your own hand.

"Then she left." I sighed. "Some could not stand the shame. They went into honor-death, knowing that doing so dishonored them more. Others ran, becoming raiders, little more than thieves, as we know from, Dantooine.

"But one day we hoped that our honor would be returned. That is until Revan fell at Zanebra. Now we are trapped, unable to regain our honor, unwilling to surrender our lives. None can claim the title of Mandalor without ritual combat or the Mand'alor's word unless all of the Clans agree, and no leader living now is so beloved.

"We had lost, and Revan won. We don't hold a grudge against her, even against those that fought there against us we have no animus. If she had been our Mand'alor in truth, we would have drunk bloodwine in the Republic Senate instead."

A short time later, the meeting broke up as we went to bed. I couldn't sleep, so I decided to do some tinkering with the lightsabers and crystals we had collected on our journey. I was passing the mess hall when I heard Bastila's voice.

"Jolee, may I have a moment?"

"Sure." Jolee sounded tired. As if fighting the same argument yet again.

"There is something I think we need to discuss-"

"Spare me." His voice was harsh, in pain. "I don't want to hear the whole 'come back to the order, all is forgiven' argument one more time."

"I know you have... issues with the order. But you are a Jedi, Jolee. You command the force as do we all. Without the guidance of the order how have you managed to stay on the side of light all these years?"

"Light side, dark side, you know it doesn't even really matter any more. The concept doesn't mean the same thing to you that it does to me. I just wanted to be left alone."

"So Malak and the Sith can do what they please?" Her voice was sharp, angry.

"Listen, if I can I will help stop Malak and the Sith right alongside anyone that fights them. But I don't have to join the order and kowtow to the council for that. Look at the crew of this ship. Carth, Canderous, Mission, Zaalbar. None of them are Jedi but you trust them to do their part. Put me alongside them if you want, but leave me out of it beyond that."

"Jolee-"

"Damn it woman, what more do I need to say? It's like Danika."

"How do you mean?"

"The capacity for good and evil is in every person. Just as using the force is there in everyone if they can touch it. Our non Jedi crew do what they think is right, just as Danika is doing even now. You didn't see the agony she went through facing that damn computer on Kashyyyk, I did. Her inherent honesty got her through that, and I expect everyone who can't touch the Force aboard this ship will make their decisions based on what they believe is right. Being a member of the Jedi or even of the Sith will not change a person's basic nature."

She sighed. "I can see you are adamant about this. No doubt you had a lot of time to think about what you might say if the discussion ever came up-"

"More than you might think, between dodging animals that wanted to invite me to dinner as the main course."

"I guess it was foolish of me to think that I of all people could sway you in your position just with a reasoned argument."

"If that's your way of saying that I am old and stubborn, thank you. But I appreciate the effort." He raised his voice. "Do you think I lived all those years without knowing when something was watching me, Danika?"

I stepped into the compartment. "Get some sleep, girl." He ordered. "Leave an old man to his memories." He looked at Bastila. "You too."


	19. Manaan: Embassy Raid

Manaan

Danika

_ I dived from above, seeing an ocean that stretched from horizon to horizon. There in the distance, was what looked like a structure, but it was not important. I dropped like a stone, plunging into the ocean. Down I flew, passing creatures both strange and wonderful. Ahead of me I saw a structure, and stopped. Somehow I knew this had not been here before. At the foot of the farthest reach of the machinery, there was a circle of lights around the Star Map. I dropped to stand on the mud, feeling the water rock me gently. There was a cry, a sound of distress and anger. Off to one side I saw Firaxa, the predators of Manaan's deep. Then a shadow came over, and I looked up at-_

I opened my eyes. I had gotten better at least, not disturbing Sasha when a vision came to me. We were less than a day out of Manaan.

The next morning, Bastila was ecstatic.

"The Force continues to lead us on the proper path. Another Star Map. It is strange, however that the builders we seek should set such a map here. The entire surface is covered with oceans."

"Perhaps like Tatooine, it wasn't always so."

"There is that. A cataclysm such as the one that turned Tatooine into a desert might have melted the polar ice caps and drowned the planet. The records of that time are fragmentary, and the Selkath have little knowledge of the ocean depths, even though that is where they were born. No matter, we will find it." As we closed I could see the city named Ahto. Fifty kilometers across, it rested on massive pylons that kept it high and dry for the visitors. It had been built only for visitors, because the Selkath were amphibious, with both gills and lungs, and wore environmental suits to keep their skins wet when they were out of the water.

As we approached, it became more interesting. Davik was wanted on Manaan as was _Ebon Hawk_, and we had to use one of the extra ID chips for the ship. So it was _Star-cluster Wayfarer _that called down for landing instructions. There was no argument, and when we landed, there were no massive amounts of troops ready to lock us up. I went into the landing bay with Juhani and Mission.

The door opened on an argument. A Sith trooper in full armor was squared off with a Republic trooper. "You pathetic people. Living off the table scraps of the Senators!"

"The Senators work for the common good! Not for gain!"

The Sith laughed. "If you are truly that weak minded, you might live long enough to be ruled by someone with true strength, like the Sith!'

"I ought to rip your fool head off!" The Republic soldier said.

"Go ahead. If you're man enough!" The Sith growled.

"Trooper." I called the Republic soldier. "You have duties to perform. I suggest you go about it."

The Sith looked at me, and I could feel the glare. "Yes, run like a little child when your mother calls."

"At least we know who our parents are." I replied calmly. The Sith clenched his fist, and stormed off.

"Sorry, master Jedi. The Sith keep trying to goad us into fighting." He motioned. There were a lot of security cameras. "The Selkath are neutrals, and they mean it. Any fighting, they dock the nation responsible. So far we've spent almost twice what the Kolto cost in fines." He laughed. "But so have the Sith, so I think it's working out."

"So the Selkath are neutral. What of the Sith?"

"Neutral means just that. Neither side is allowed to attack an enemy ship in their system. If you do, they cut off your side's share of the Kolto."

"But the Sith could just move on in!" Mission said.

"Don't bet on it. The only people that can get down to harvest the Kolto are the Selkath. This entire city," He waved at the structure, "was built for our benefit, not theirs. When the Sith Ambassador of two years ago suggested they could take it by force, the Selkath council itemized every weapon the Sith had, and how just aiming at a Selkath would cause them to sink the city. No one wants to find out if they're really that crazy. The Kolto is too important."

I nodded. Kolto is a healing agent, and also has a limited regenerative effect in small quantities. Billions of lives had been saved in the years since it was first discovered. What it was really no one could say. The Selkath brought it up out of the ocean, processed it, and sold it. All attempts to duplicate it in a laboratory thus far had failed. The only source was controlled by people who obviously wanted to be left alone.

"They sell it to anyone that brings in a ship with the credits for it." The soldier went on. "Us, the Sith, they don't care. They even sold to the Mandalorians during that war."

"Why haven't they joined the Republic?"

He shrugged. "If someone had asked before this war began, they might have. But right now it's too profitable selling to both sides. But I can't see the Sith just standing there and taking that for long."

Neither could I. "We're looking for the Embassy."

"There's an information kiosk at the Port authority office. They'll give you a map there."

"Thank you." We walked out. There was a small kiosk beyond the door. I heard a voice in Selkath over the speakers. I looked up.

ENTERING CITY STRUCTURE. ALL CAMERAS NOW ACTIVATED

"I know, it's disturbing, but it's to warn visitors where the law stops on the city." The Selkath at the kiosk said. "Otherwise you dry landers would be killing anything and everything!" They were an odd looking race to us land dwellers. Bipedal, with two arms which ended in webbed hands, they had to wear an environmental suit constantly to keep their leathery skin moist. The wide flat snout stuck out, with two small dewlaps that hung from the end of their jaws. A mister sprayed over the head, keeping it moist. The two eyes at the back of the skull were set to look outward. The merchant had to turn his head side to side to look at us with both eyes.

"I carry a variety of souvenirs, and local delicacies for the discerning palate if you've a mind."

I glanced at Mission. "Do you have any candy?"

"Ah, sweets for children?" He ignored Mission's protest. He pulled out a small bag of jelly like blocks. "This is Maaanal. I will allow your youngling a sample."

Mission took a piece out, and popped it in her mouth, "Oh! That is good!'

"One credit for a large bag." He held up a bag that would hold about a kilo of the sweet.

Mission looked at me entreatingly, and I paid for it. "Be right back." She ran toward the ship.

"Should I ask what it is made of?" I asked when she was out of earshot.

"Humans can be so, disturbed by natural processes. It is made from the belly slime of a Mala fish."

"Thank you for not telling us earlier." I said. Mission rejoined us, and we walked on toward the central alleyway. The city had five sections, and each was separated by wind screens and shields to block the ever present waves. With no land to block them, the waves could reach 100 meters in height even without storms. The first section was the Docking ring, set in the center of the giant doughnut. Access was restricted to the owners when they were corporate, or by nationalities, so that the Sith docks were in one section, and the Republic in another. We had landed in the unaligned/merchant area. If we had given a Republic code, they would have sent us there instead.

A tram rushed us to West Central, where the customs kiosk was. We found only another Selkath, and a heavy guard droid. As we entered, the droid straightened, and it's targeting sensors locked on us.

"Halt." It ordered. "Who among you is Davik Kang?"

"Davik Kang is dead. Why are we being asked this question?"

"Your vessel was once named _Ebon Hawk_, registered as owned by Davik Kang, a known smuggler." The Selkath replied. "We allowed it to land in hopes that we had finally captured the criminal. Ship's papers please?"

I handed over the ID chip. "Ah, purchased a month ago. Very well. Droid, stand down." The droid settled back, and fell silent. "Welcome to Ahto City, we hope you will decide to obey our laws while you are here?"

"What laws specifically?" I asked.

"Human humor, I see. The single most important law is that smuggling of Kolto is punishable by death. If you are transporting Kolto in any form, you must also have a permit for the amount you carry except in standard medicinal quantities.

"The only other rule is that the planet and our people are neutrals in this war. We adhere strictly to that policy. If you part in a confrontation here, and it is proven that you are responsible for it, you will be fined. If you are actively working for either the Sith Empire, or the Republic, your national units will be fined. Is this understood?" I nodded.

"We allow the carrying of weapons because we practice religious freedom here. It would not be right to tell you to disarm when an Echani needs to carry his under his religion or a mercenary because they are the tools of his trade. This means you must practice restraint. Is there anything else?"

I shook my head. He named the fee, and I paid it. He handed me a set of translator plugs, and a map. "Please peruse the guide if you have any questions. There are information pads in every corridor, and by touching one, you can gather any information not within the guide. Thank you for visiting."

Ahto West

Mission

That Maaanal was tasty! I had brought a handful along, hoping Sasha the glutton wouldn't scarf it all while we were gone. Danika and Juhani kept looking at me and smiling when I popped another one into my mouth. I ignored them. I'm a growing girl, well, in one area at least, and we need our calories, you know? The Selkath had set up the main tramline with malicious aforethought. Unless you're going to the docking ring, the trams stop at each section on the way. The Embassy was in East Central, but to get there you had to go through West, then West Central...

You get the picture.

We strolled, with both Danika and Juhani watching everything. Man, you'd think at that age with their looks they should have trolled the first cantina they came to for free drinks and food. But not them. We came to the edge of the city walk, and looked down. The edge of the disk of the city ran down a kilometer from where we were, and as we watched a huge wave ran up almost to the city walk. Like a steel beach! Danika was looking at it, then turned. I can't feel the Force, but I knew she felt something. Then she was striding forward, into of all things, a cantina.

Back in the back of the room, a Selkath sat by himself. I don't know what he was drinking, but if his breath was any indication, woof!

"You are troubled." Danika said.

The Selkath looked up, then away. "Leave me in my misery if you are of the Sith."

"I am not of the Sith. I am a Jedi."

"Jedi?" The fish-man looked at her in that goggling way they had. "Perhaps you can help an old fin then. I expect that we have little in common human, but do your people have a love of family?"

"Yes, we do."

"Then listen and tell me if you can help. I have no love of the Sith. They have never allowed anyone to stay neutral before, and their words to our council do not match their natures. They do not respect our laws, and try to get your people to break it with their words.

"I would never allow this to continue, but I am only an old professor, and no one wishes to learn history anymore. But I believe I can gain the proof of what I think is happening."

"Tell me." Danika was in that gentle bemused place she gets in. They tell me it helps when you're negotiating.

"Some of our young have gone missing. They have only a few things in common. They are all on the cusp of adulthood, all what you might call 'lucky', and, they are all children of our leaders. The ones that in the next few years will become our Councilors. My own Shasha is among them."

"A professor's child? Why would they take her?" I asked. Danika gave me a 'butt out' look.

"Well I am also a Councilor. I am on the High Council itself." He admitted. "I am most alarmed because these disappearances began when the new Ambassador arrived. The last one had a bit of a mischief a couple of years ago."

"He did?"

"He called A Wookiee that belonged to Czerka Corporation a monkey. The fellow twisted his head completely around before the restraining collar could stop him."

"I am touched." Danika replied. "Czerka just lost control of Kashyyyk."

"I have heard. The Wookiee here have all asked for and received political asylum. They are awaiting transport home."

So you want me to investigate these disappearances?"

"Yes. There is no one else I can turn to. The Mercenaries aren't allowed out of this section of the city without a valid contract, and the Republic troops are too carefully watched. Relations are already strained thanks to our own council. There is talk of throwing both governments off our planet, allowing only transshipment of Kolto through a civilian carrier trusted by both sides."

I looked at Danika. She was grim. The information dovetailed too neatly with what Jordo had given us.

"We will investigate this." Danika replied.

"If you find any information, you can contact me through the barkeep. He will send it to me immediately."

"Agreed."

"Can it be that Jordo is truthful?" Juhani asked as we walked away.

"A civilian carrier 'trusted by both sides' sounds like Czerka to me. Mission, find an info kiosk. See if there is a Czerka office here."

I stopped at the info pad they had installed, pulling out my tools. People tend to forget that if you take a computer and link it to a net, the right person can access anything.

I'm not decorating my Lekku when I say it, but when it comes to computers, I am the right person.

"Got it! Located in Ahto East Central, near the Republic embassy. But their main computer isn't in the system. Neither is the Sith or Republic ones."

"Not surprising." Danika murmured. "Come. We have an ambassador to see."

The tram dropped us near the ocean. We walked into the main courtyard, and I nodded toward a door. "Czerka offices."

Danika nodded. "How fast can you work?"

"Well T3 would be better than I am, but... Five minutes?"

"Too long." She decided. "We would need to clear the building for that long, and can't see them letting us in."

"Well I can clear the building!" I said. They looked at me. "I did access everything but their main systems. The secondary system includes environmental. Have you consider how bad some stuff can smell?"

"What do you mean?"

I held up the tourist guide. "It says here that raw Kolto has an odor so horrible that only the Selkath seem to be immune to it. Processing is required to alleviate this odor, and only the final refining process limits it to a tolerable level. That," I pointed at the large door beside the Czerka office, "Is listed on the map as a raw Kolto storage area."

"Mission, must we always put up with your criminal proclivities?" Danika asked in a mock-severe tone. "Though I think this would be more on the practical joke side."

I grinned, and ran to the nearest information kiosk. I sliced in, and had a thought. When they tried to fix the problem, they would discover what I had done. Maybe... I checked the info for news. Czerka hadn't officially reported what was happening on Kashyyyk yet, though it was in everyone else's news. All they had to say was complaints against the 'high handed' manner of the local courts judging the Wookiee here as free. I came up with a name, The Anti-Slavery People's Army, and quickly drafted a communique claiming responsibility for their 'attack' on Czerka here. I downloaded it to a datapad then wiped the case, and logged out. I sliced back in using another kiosk a few meters away, and first buggered the local cameras. They fuzzed out and would remain out for the next ten minutes.

Now, shift forced draft air from here, order it sent to here instead. Open vents here and here...

I logged out, and was back beside my friends when suddenly there was this horrendous smell! When they said raw Kolto smelled bad, they weren't joking! It made Zaalbar's breath smell sweet! Everyone who wasn't Selkath recoiled from the stench. A group of people ran frantically from the Czerka office. I slipped on a breathing mask, and as they ran past us, took off at a dead run.

Behind me, Danika and Juhani were helping, making people look other ways as I went through the door. I dropped my datapad with the declaration on the reception desk, then ran into one of the inner offices. There was a terminal still up! That saved me time. I sliced in, bringing up secret company correspondence. There was a lot, but I downloaded all of it onto a datapad I picked up off the desk with a nice Czerka logo on it. A good touch if you ask me.

Thanks to the already operational console, I was back out in two minutes flat.

I pulled off my mask, and took a deep breath.

Bad Idea. I whooped my cookies right there. I hated that part. I didn't have any more Maaanal and would have to hope that Sasha had left me some. Coming back up, it tasted like fish slime!

Danika and Juhani ran in, picking me up, and carrying me out of the way as a whole lot of Selkath arrived. Some were obviously the local cops, and they were looking for someone. But the only one close to us looked at me, then past to search.

We had to stay there the better part of an hour as the Selkath first shut down the vent system, then began looking for the Anti-Slavery People's Army rep they had caught on the monitors. They showed around the picture, but we didn't recognize her. A pity. According to their cameras she was short human with red hair and Echani armor. Nothing at all like me.

Ahto East Central

Danika

While we were waiting, I read the correspondence Mission had downloaded. The part that bothered me most was a comment on one of the inner office memos;

'The contract has been sent to the Sith Ambassador, who has been trying to adjust the conditions. He will get it back to me by close of business in two days'.

That had been written yesterday. I nibbled at my lip as the Selkath finally began allowing people to move again. If I had a reason, I could enter the Sith embassy, but what reason could I give?

The Republic embassy was a small structure off Ahto East. We went through the process of reporting in, asking for an audience with the Ambassador. Surprisingly, as soon as the guards knew we were Jedi, we were sent in immediately.

He greeted us like an officer in charge of a besieged garrison. "Welcome! I am Roland Wann, Ambassador to Manaan. I'm so glad you finally arrived!"

I looked at him oddly. "We were not scheduled to arrive, Ambassador. We have another mission for the Jedi Council."

His smile slipped. "Oh, dear. Well what can I do for you?"

"We are looking for a Star Map. A relic of an ancient and forgotten people."

"An ancient and forgotten people." He repeated. "That might be what we found."

"You know something?" I asked.

"Perhaps." His aura grew darker, a sign of duplicity. "However, if you wish my information, you must help me out with a problem first."

"Ambassador, Jedi do not barter like fishmongers in the street."

"If my problem is not taken care of, you will not have time to go to the artifact we have discovered." He replied waspishly. "We were using a submersible reconnaissance droid near Hrakert Rift which is about twenty kilometers from the city. Something we have never seen before damaged it during that mission. The last record we received showed literally hundreds of the Firaxan sharks circling the Rift.

"The droid was badly damaged, and it's auto systems engaged to get it back to the surface. However a small Sith vessel was inbound, and spotted it first. They picked it up, and took it into their Embassy.

"The Sith have been pressuring the local government for some time, and they were able to block our attempts to get it back. Once it was inside their embassy of course, they didn't need to. The droid's data block is heavily encrypted, and we know it will take several days for the Sith to access it. But they have already had twelve hours to work on it, and time is running out!"

"What about your own troops?"

"First, we would be in violation of Selkath law if I sent troops in to retrieve it. Such an act could get the Selkath to evict us from the planet, and cut our supply of Kolto. Second," He sighed. "All of the troops I have available were sent on another mission, and have not yet returned. We do not have time to waste."

I nodded. The Star Map and the droid were linked in this web of duplicity. So were the men he had sent out. I felt that he didn't expect them to return at all. "How would I get into this base?"

"The Sith have exclusive access to a docking bay for a shuttle that runs from here to the lower level of the Sith embassy. It has an encrypted access, but a man we captured had a pass card for that door."

I reached out, and he handed me the pass card. "I should warn you that we have no idea of the numbers the Sith maintain in the embassy. If you do not move swiftly and decisively, they will overwhelm you. I must also warn you that the Republic will disavow any knowledge of your actions. I cannot protect you if you are captured."

I had never considered that he might. Kolto was too important to the war effort. We left, returning to the ship. I decided to take Juhani and T3 with me. If we needed to break into computers in the Sith embassy, T3 was much better suited. Mission went in search of Sasha to get some more of the Maaanal. I shuddered. Maybe it was addictive to humans or Twi-lek?

Juhani stepped down onto the dock, and T3 rolled to a stop beside her. "We go in quietly if we can, but no one stops us. Understood?"

Juhani nodded. T3 just burbled and beeped. I led the way back to the tram, and inserted the Sith pass card. The tram rumbled along, and stopped at another section of the docking ring. I stepped out, leading them to a door into one of the bays. I opened it, and we entered the access way.

EXITING CITY STRUCTURE. ALL CAMERAS NOW DEACTIVATED. The system said.

The inner door opened, and a Dark Jedi turned, seeing us. I blasted him off his feet with the Force, my light saber singing. "So much for quietly." I whispered.

T3 rolled in, turned, and the twin blasters in his dome popped up. He took three Sith troopers in armor to our left under fire as Juhani charged three more on our right. I charged at the Jedi, cutting him down. I blocked a blast, the bolt ricocheting to blow another trooper off his feet as Juhani dealt with the last one on her side. T3 rolled forward, checking the bodies of his kills.

There was a small shuttlecraft resting on the pad, and we entered it. There was only one control, a red button, and a slot for the pass card. I slid it in pushed the button; and the ship lifted, rotating as the ramp closed. It flew outward, then dived, turning to fly under the city. The bottom of the city was smooth. Any crevices or bends in the metal would have given the ocean something to pull against during a storm. The shuttle aimed upward, and a section of the city opened ahead. The ship flew in, settled on a landing pad, and cycled down.

Sith Embassy

Danika

We moved into the embassy, and T3 led the way. There was a door ahead, and he stopped at it, inserting an arm into the locking mechanism. There was a squealing, and it opened into a room. We went left, passing down a hall. The door at the end read Flow Control Room. We charged in, dealing with the guards there. There was a computer, but it was controlling just the flow of water into a series of rooms in a baffling manner. We went on, and found a hallway blocked by a force field. Beyond it were two hulking Heavy droids.

"What is in there?" I wondered.

"No matter. Where is the droid facility?"

T3 rolled up to an access panel, and plugged in. Then it bleeped, and my data pad blossomed with another section of halls, One was marked as the main entrance to the city above, the other had a room marked 'Droid Recovery Room'.

"Is this the best you can do?" I asked. He bleeped. I read my pad.

That is all that is in the memory of this toaster they have mounted in the wall. There is a main computer beyond the droid recovery room The section that ended in darkness flashed as if to say, 'here dummy'.

I shook my head, and we headed for the recovery room. Unfortunately we had to pass through the Security control room, and we couldn't have timed our arrival worse if we had tried. The shift had just changed, and every soldier knows that this is the most alert time of any watch.

The guard at the desk saw us, and started to press a button. I reached out, and she slumped stunned as we charged the guards. There were five of them, but we took care of them easily. We hurried past into the section where the Droid Recovery Room was. The guards there were expecting relief, not an attack. We took them down, and turned to look at the droid. It was shaped like a torpedo with legs, all hanging limply at the moment. T3 rolled up, hoisted himself to full height, and opened a panel on the side. He pulled out his access arm, and signaled that he was done.

All data downloaded and data block reformatted He rolled to the computer console and accessed it. Al copies deleted and data segments used for storage reformatted

Instead of heading back, we went on down the hall that T3 said led to the main computer. We entered a large atrium, and ducked for cover as a Sith and a Selkath came out of a room to the south.

"Then it is agreed Duula?" He asked.

"Yes. Ambassador Kolorid. The next time there is a major confrontation between your peoples, and the Republic is judged to be the blame, I will call for the removal of both forces from Manaan. Czerka Corporation has already offered to take up the shipments of both sides." The Selkath said.

"Good." Kolorid purred. "I am sure that Czerka will live up to their responsibilities."

"You understand this is the only way to maintain our neutrality." Duula went on. "If fight you must, you must do it away from here."

"I can agree with that. I know my Republic Counterpart will disagree, but he wants the Kolto for himself."

They stood exchanging platitudes for several more minutes, then the Selkath touched a stud on his armband. A small flyer lifted over the rail, and he mounted it.

"As do we, you stupid fish." Kolorid growled once the Selkath was gone. He went back into the office.

T3 rolled out, and entered the hallway to the main computer. He accessed the system, humming in satisfaction.

I can slice and dice this system He bleeped. Do you want it fried or as sushi?

"Don't say that where the Selkath can hear you." I admonished. "Any guards left?"

One barracks. Neutralized

"Droids?"

The two in the passageway we saw. Disabled. Force field down

"What about the contract the Czerka rep was talking about?"

Correspondence over a four week period including discussions on the percentage of Republic consigned Kolto to be turned over to Sith ships, then reported as 'captured' by Sith forces. Sith want 45%, Czerka wants to limit it to 25. Copy downloaded to data pad

"So they get paid twice." Juhani said. "The Republic even pays their insurance for loss!" I nodded.

"What is that area beyond the droids?"

Marked Selkath Training Area. Marked as Accessed only by Dark Jedi Master Tolan

"Dark Jedi Master?" Juhani asked aghast. Among the Jedi, you have merely Apprentice Padawan and Master as ranks, though Padawan are also divided into Padawan-teacher and Padawan-learner. But the Sith seemed to have discovered the pleasures of a bureaucracy. Apprentices, Dark Jedi, Dark Jedi Teachers, Dark Jedi Masters, Darth Apprentices, and Darth Masters.

"We have to find out what is in there." I said. "Dark Jedi or no." I looked at T3. "Can you store all of the data you have collected in a file so no one can access it without my command?"

As if that were hard. All data collected in this complex stored in file 'Ship maintenance' and 200 pages of basic maintenance of the ship stuck on at the start

We moved back to the force field. The droids beyond it were dark, and T3 went up to each disabling them permanently.

I walked past them, and into the hall beyond. The walls were covered with murals, and each mural extolled a battle the Sith had won, or a great leader of their sect. However history played second fiddle to histrionics. Darth Kun killing his master, but in the mural, Vodo-Siosk Baas was attacking him from behind. Yavin, with Exar Kun standing on the summit of his temple, the worshipful Massassi falling to power the great bolt of Force he fired into the heavens. There were more, each more appalling. Ajunta Pall, the first of the Jedi to join the Sith, looking like a saint as he stood on Korriban on a pile of bodies.

I was sickened by the time we reached the end of the corridor. I heard a moan, and knew that it was not sound, but the Force calling. I turned right, and opened the door marked Medical Bay. Lying on the floor was a horribly tortured young Selkath. I knelt beside him, running my hand over his head gently. The rubbery skin was soft.

"Shasha?" The dying male asked in a soft voice.

"No. I am Danika. I am a Jedi."

"Then it is not too late." He tried to roll over, and I helped him. He ripped open his suit, pulling out a small medallion. "Tell Shasha... tell the others... The Sith..." He gasped, and died.

I clutched the medallion, then lay him back down. "T3, where is this 'master' Tolan."

He bleeped, and for once I didn't need the translation. I stormed down the hall to the door, and it opened. A Selkath was busy with two training droids, and I slammed him into a wall with the force hard enough to knock him out. The door beyond was where Tolan was.

This door also opened. "Who dares disturb..." He stared at me. "You're dead!"

"What is it, Master?" One of the Selkath apprentices with him asked.

"Kill her!" He screamed.

I stepped between them. To me at that moment they were stuck in syrup and unable to move. I struck at Tolan, and his lightsaber blocked me. He reached out, and I felt his feeble attempt to catch my throat. I pushed it aside, then reached out. I could visualize his heart, and he spasmed as my hand closed on it. One squeeze...

_ No! I would not sink to his level!_

I released him, then cut, his head bouncing across the floor. Juhani looked at me, and I could see the shock then approval at how close I had come to becoming what I hated the most.

It took a few minutes to find Tolan's logs. He had waxed lyrical on the 'naiveté' of the Selkath, and how they would fall into the line the Sith demanded without demur. As for the poor tortured Selkath, he had noted, 'Galas has proven intransigent, wanting reasons for why the Jedi are evil. I have dealt him a lesson in pain that would have pleased Darth Malak!'

I held it. I knew somehow where the Selkath apprentices were. I led our party back to them.

The door hissed open, and the four Selkath stood. "Intruders! I can feel the Force in them. The Jedi are attacking!" He looked to a female. "Shasha, should we call our Master?"

"Not yet. We cannot run to the Master every time a little problem occurs. We will handle this by ourselves."

"Perhaps this is a test they have given us!" Another Selkath said.

"Perhaps. Speak, Human. What are you doing here? Only Loyal Selkath of the New Order and our Dark Jedi Masters are allowed here!"

"I send you greetings from your father Shaelas. He asked me to investigate your whereabouts."

"I told you he would investigate Shasha! You're father has always hated the Sith!"

"My father is blinded by his own prejudice! He cannot see that we, the young must soon lead, and it is we that will make the decisions. Decisions guided by what is right for our people!" She glared at me. "Return to that old man who knows nothing of truth! The Sith teach us the ways of the Force, praise us for our insight! Will lead us into a new world where we will decide! Not old stupid men!"

"They lie to you." I said.

"Everything the Republic spouts about the Sith are half-truths and full lies! They are no more monsters than the Republic! Their system is more pure, in that the intelligent and the strong lead!" She laughed. "As a sign of their good faith, they have even promised to withdraw their forces after the Republic is defeated!"

I sighed. Then I spoke from the well of the Force within me in her own language. "And it is said the Firaxa will promise to let you go if you enter his mouth. For he knows a meal says nothing of value about being eaten."

She stiffened. "Spare us your lies! The Sith have treated us with nothing but respect! Your words say that we are prisoners, but do you see any guards? Galas decided that this was not his way, and was returned to the city not an hour ago!"

"What of Taris-"

"Taris was propaganda! Like the claims of the Mandalorian atrocities that were lies!"

I held out my hand, the medallion Galas had given me on my palm. "Look in the Medical Bay. You will find a young Selkath tortured to death. Before he died, he gave me this."

One of the Selkath took it, looking at the medallion. "I recognize this! I gave it to Galas when we were both young!"

"Lies and more lies!" I could see that she was shaken by it. "You must have killed him yourself! That is only proof that Galas is dead, but not of who killed him!"

Wordlessly, I handed her the datapad. Shasha took it, and keyed it open. The others gathered to look.

"Shasha, this is the master's own pad! And that is the master!" They watched the scene play out. Shasha shut it off, and her hand dropped lifeless.

I spoke gently. "Shasha, I know what they said to you. 'The old will not pay attention until you force them. They are jealous of what you can do that they no longer can. We can give you the power they have now, rather than waiting the years they say you must'." I shook my head sadly. "I would have gladly brought you to the attention of the Council if I had seen you before today. Do you think that I, your elder by ten years likes being told that I am too young and foolish? Yet there is wisdom in the words, 'He that admits he doesn't know everything is willing to learn anything'. My master told me that."

"I cannot deny it." She said sadly. "The Sith only use us to betray our people. We must take this to my father, report this to the Council." She looked sadly at me. "It was a beautiful dream, but dreams are not real. I apologize for my harsh words. We must go from here, warn our people of what the Sith intend."

They walked out with the pad. We retraced our steps to the elevator.

Arrest

Danika

A pair of Selkath in Constabulary uniforms with a full dozen droids awaited our arrival on the deck above. "You there, human! You are to be placed under arrest by order of the City Council of Ahto City. You will come with me."

"Why am I being arrested?" I asked. T3 and Juhani had moved aside, ready to attack at me word.

"While the Sith Embassy is by law an extraterritorial region, our systems have detected a number of energy discharges suggesting weapons fire. Inquiries of the embassy staff have netted incomprehension. The only person that could be contacted was the ambassador himself. He has since reported that there are a number of dead and things of great value have been stolen.

"You, the Cathar and your droid were reported by the cameras in docking section 7A, which is restricted to the Sith, yet your entry records state no such allegiance.

"As the leader of this party it is the judgment that you are the cause of the loss of communication, and are to be arrested for murder and other charges yet to be determined. Your companions will be returned to your vessel, and the ship will be banned from departure until your trial is completed.

"You will now come with us. Any attempt to escape will be dealt with. Lethal force has been authorized."

I looked at him, then took my lightsaber from my belt, handing it to Juhani. "I am at you disposal."

The trams may have been set to go through and stope at all the areas of the city, but the pass card the Selkath officer used took us straight to Ahto West, where the court and the holding facility was. I was put in a holding cell, and the door closed. I knelt, and focused my mind. I meditated while I waited. Something brought my attention back, and I opened my eyes, seeing Ambassador Kolorid.

"Well, I have to thank you woman. Thanks to this brazen attack, the Republic will either be barred from the planet, or will pay such a fine that they will buy our Kolto for the next year."

"I think not." I said softly. "My trial will reveal that you have been taking Selkath youths and trying to convert them to your philosophy."

His smile slipped. "You can't prove that. We know your droid didn't have any such data in his memory banks." We asked the Selkath to check. And the data pad you carried?" He smirked. "Proprietary diplomatic correspondence. We demanded its return."

"Then it is only my word against yours." I said, closing my eyes. "Gloat somewhere else, Ambassador."

He stormed off. I was starting to sink back into meditation when someone else came to the cell. I sighed, opening my eyes. It was a Selkath in the drab covering of their legal profession.

"I am Bwa'lass. I have been selected to be your arbiter for the trial."

"Arbiter?"

"Yes. The accused is allowed an arbiter to plead his case, since only the arbiter may speak unless the subject is directly questioned in court. It streamlines our court system. I will endeavor to defend your actions and to mitigate the severity of the sentencing."

"What have I been charged with?"

"Initiating violence against the Sith within their embassy, murder of Sith embassy personnel, theft or deletion of proprietary data, and disregarding our own laws in so doing." He checked his data pad. "The evidence is strong, but I may be able to mitigate sentencing at least."

An alarm went off in my head. "You don't expect me to go free."

"It is highly unlikely. The Sith have supplied video data that shows you assaulting their people, and killing them. However there may be mitigation in your reasons for being there. I have been given all the relevant background data on you and your companions, so we can ignore that. For what reason did you enter the Sith Embassy illegally?"

"I, well, I broke in."

He made a whistling sound I knew was the equivalent of a human snorting. "Criminality seems to be the norm with you off worlders. I am not terribly surprised by your actions, but the court will wish to hear something more substantive. What is your prior association with the Sith?"

"I am on a mission for the Jedi Council. As such my previous dealings with the Sith are not germane to this case."

"I would beg to differ. It is well known that the Jedi and the Sith hate each other. The Sith are an expansionist power, as is the Republic. You and your Council may make it your personal mission to forestall them, but we frown on you fighting on our planet.

"I think you will need a more thorough explanation, including your mission in order to convince our judges." He hummed to himself. "That seems to be all I need before the trial. When you are ready, I can petition the Judges for the trial to commence."

That had been the most lackluster attempt at an interview I had ever heard. "That is all you're going to ask?"

"I have all the information I need to mitigate your sentencing. The facts on the other matters are clear."

"If it's all the same to your laws, I would rather defend myself."

He looked at me. "While that is your right, I would advise against it. I am versed in all the necessary particulars of this case and the laws of the Selkath as they apply. To set me aside as arbiter will put you at risk of the death penalty."

"That is all well and good, but I would rather go into court as my own council, rather than with an arbiter who already believes my guilt and merely seeks to mitigate it."

"I will so inform the court. I will also ask as my final act as your arbiter, that they give you until dawn tomorrow to think about this request."


	20. Manaan: Rift

Breakout, sort of

Danika

It was around midnight when I came out of meditation with a start. There had been a sound, like a sonic rifle going off, but hushed. I came to my feet, and reached for the door. There was a tingle of electricity. If I touched it I would bounce around the tiny cell for an hour before I stopped.

I concentrated on the lock, and it snicked open. The field collapsed as it did. I shoved the door open, then snatched a data pad from the desk, setting it to record. With the Force, I leaped onto the lintel of the door.

The door hissed open below me, and I imagined myself a brick in the wall. Two people entered. The darkness hid their race. One of them aimed a wide-belled weapon, and the sonic charge blasted into my cell. "Get her."

The other opened the door, and bent. "She isn't here."

"What? Of course she is! We took out the guard, the door was locked!"

"Well she must be invisible then, because I don't see her." He flipped on a hand light, looking around the room.

I concentrated on the man with the light. _You don't see her. She must have escaped..._

"She must have escaped herself." He sighed. "What's the plan?"

"Well of course we can't dump her in the ocean for the Firaxa. The rest of the plan is just what the Ambassador says. We were paid by one of her crew to bust her out, and she took passage on the Ithorian freighter."

"Fine. Should we mention that she already got away?"

"Are you stupid? Then he doesn't pay us the rest." They went out mumbling. I dropped to the floor, then stepped outside. The guard was huddled against the wall, shuddering. A close up sonic blast. I found a med kit on his belt, and injected him with something to alleviate the affects, then I moved to a close by kiosk. I called the ship.

"Trouble." I filled Carth in on what had happened, including the impromptu jailbreak. "I'm willing to bet that the local cameras are either rigged to say what they want, or were shut down. Easier to claim I broke myself out. Or someone from the ship helped."

"We'll come over and get you."

"You will do nothing of the kind. Have Mission crack into the local database. Find a Selkath named Shaelas. He's the father of one of the Selkath recruits. Give him the full story concerning his daughter and the Sith. Ask him to help."

"But what will you do?"

"I am going to find a quiet place and catch a nap. Call back at this kiosk in an hour."

"Danika." Bastila came on the com. "We can't just leave you out there!"

"You have to. But I would love to have you there in the morning when I go to trial. A cup of tea before it begins would be nice. Afterward we can have breakfast."

There was silence. "If it were anyone else, I would think you had just made a date." She said archly.

"Maybe I have." I chuckled. "See you in court." I logged off, and found an out of the way alcove. I set my internal alarm for an hour, and sank back into meditation. If done properly, meditation could make up for sleep. I kept hanging up on Tolan. _You're dead!_ Who did he think I was?

An hour later, I roused myself, and headed toward the kiosk. A garbage truck was parked there, and a Selkath was busy checking the trash receptacles along the way. I waited, but he didn't move on.

"Danika Wordweaver. Shaelas sent me." The Selkath whispered. I stepped out, and he motioned for me to get in the bin on the back. The vehicle hummed, then moved away at a fast clip. It entered a tram, and I heard a pass card being used. Then the tram stopped. "Please, exit the vehicle."

I slid over the side. Shaelas and Shasha stood there. The girl touched my side. "You have not escaped!"

"No. Why should I have?"

"That is what my father asked the media when they reported that you had attacked a guard and escaped. Two off worlders claimed they had been paid by your shipmates to break you out, and saw you as far as a transport that left an hour ago. The constabulary has surrounded your ship, with orders to fire on it if they attempt to escape as well!"

I told them what had happened. Shaelas nodded. "If you had disappeared, everything you have said would have been instantly suspect. But as you are a fugitive, the local constabulary and those bounty hunters hired by both the Republic and the Sith embassies will be hunting for you. That could cause chaos and damage if you do not go to safe ground. You will be guest in my land house this evening. My daughter and I will assure that you are in court tomorrow."

"First, who has been pushing to allow a corporation to pick up the Kolto for both sides? I have heard not only here but on Kashyyyk that your government intends to kick both sides off the planet as well if the confrontations continue."

"That would be councilor Duula. He is also one of the judges this cycle. You see, all of the councilors take a turn as judges. That way any corruption is also punishable as failure to heed their charge as judge. Why?"

"Sit with me and I will tell you..."

The land house was an apartment used by the Selkath for entertaining or for guests that were not aquatic as they were. I found the furniture to be bland, but since they themselves never spent too much time there, it didn't matter.

As the sun rose, Shasha came up out of a hole leading to the sea. Her wet suit dripped as she entered the bedroom. "My father will join us shortly. We don't stock a lot of off worlder food, but we do have some things that are edible by you."

"Nothing for me, unless you have some form of tea."

"Sadly, we do not. Hot liquids would scar our throats. However father will try to arrange for some hot beverages for you when we reach the courtroom."

"That will be fine. Thank him for me."

Shaelas had a lifter designed by his own people. It was amphibious and watertight as well, allowing it to operate below the surface and above. He flew it out of his land house, into the ocean, then up over the expanse of the city. My clothes had been cleaned, so I didn't smell like garbage anymore.

The lifter dropped in Ahto West at the courthouse, and we stepped out.

"Since the female has fled, she has freely admitted her crime." Ambassador Kolorid was pontificating. "Therefore this court must impose punishment on the Republic for her heinous attack."

"Point of order, your honor." I said. The people that were there turned. Kolorid's mouth dropped open as I walked up the aisle. "I beg the court's forgiveness, the attempt to make me disappear last evening has thrown off my request to be heard as my own arbiter."

I couldn't tell with the goggle-eyed Selkath, but the humans looked stunned. Bastila grinned, and came to me, handing me a container of tea from the ship. Echani Fire Tea, my favorite.

"Can you explain what occurred in the holding facility last night?" One of the judges asked.

"Two men attacked and stunned the guard on duty. I freed myself from my cell, and was able to hide when they came in and used the same weapon on my cell. They argued, since their job was to feed me to the Firaxa. They decided to follow through with the rest of the plan. Even now I assume messages have gone out to take me off an Ithorian freighter at their next port of call.

"However, as the court can see, I am here, on time, awaiting my trial. I would ask the condition of the Selkath that was injured."

"A Bothan neural stunner was used. He is in serious condition, but expected to recover. This is because an injection of Neurohystamine was used on him, which allowed him to recover enough to call his officer."

"Administered by me." I added. "Forensic testing of the injector will prove this."

"May I ask why this point must be added?" Judge Duula growled.

"Because this was an attempt to assist the guard by myself. If I had attacked him or ordered an attack, I would not have cared about his condition." I set down the data pad with the conversation of me 'rescuers'. "This, your honors, will prove my contention that I made no attempt to escape justice."

"So noted." Another judge said. "We will confer on your request to act as your own arbiter. The court will close for our deliberations" And with his words, it did just that. Panels rose between the judges and the courtroom. I sipped my tea calmly. The panels dropped after a time. "It is the decision of the majority of this court that you are allowed to act as your own arbiter. The law requires me to state however that once this trial begins, it cannot be stopped for any reason. Are you ready to begin?"

I considered. T3 was there, but where had Shaelas and Shasha gone? I shrugged. "I am ready to proceed."

"Very well. You are accused of the grievous murder of Sith officials, theft, vandalism, theft or destruction of proprietary data, and violations of the local Neutrality statute. How do you plead?"

"Innocent, your honor."

"Let the record show that empaneled for this trial are Judges Shelkar,"

"Jhosa." Another Selkath stated.

"Naleshekan."

"Kota."

"And Duula." The last said.

"This is a trial to discover the culpability and punishment of this individual in the recent assault on the Sith Embassy." Shelkar read.

"Due to the severity of these charges, normal formalities are suspended for this trial." Judge Jhosa added. "The penalty for these crimes is death." He looked to Judge Kota. "You may begin the questioning, your honor."

Kota leaned forward. "You have plead innocence in this matter. However there are records of our own sensors that weapons were fired inside the Sith embassy."

Shelkar picked it up. "We have records of you entering the restricted Sith landing bay a short time before the attack. The Sith have claimed diplomatic privilege and have told us nothing of what occurred beyond some video imagery they supplied. However you, as someone with a known antipathy for the Sith did enter their embassy just before the firing began. What was your business in the Sith Embassy?"

"I was asked to investigate the disappearance of several Selkath youths."

Jhosa sat up at this. "You were led to believe that these youth had disappeared due to some Sith plan?"

Duula poured oil on the waters. "She has no doubt been listening to the rumor mongering of Shaelas and his bunch."

"This is noted. Did you find evidence to support your suspicions?" Shelkar asked.

I folded back my collar. The search had been perfunctory when I had been arrested, and the medallion, with blood still on it, had been in the collar. I held it where they could see it, then handed it to the bailiff. He handed it to Shelkar. "This belonged to Galas. You found this inside the embassy?"

"The male child himself handed it to me before he died."

"Objection!" Kolorid screamed. "She murders a Selkath, takes something readily recognizable, and claims she found it in our embassy! The infamy of her act!"

"So noted, Ambassador. There are those among us that knew the youth, and this is his. But you have raised a valid point. How can this court know that you did not murder the youth?"

"By torture?" Someone called from the rear of the court. Shaelas, along with his daughter and three other Selkath I recognized entered. "My daughter spoke to this woman within the Sith embassy where she and others of or children had been invited to learn the ways of the force from a Sith teacher. She recognized the pin as you did, and recognized this as well." He held up the data pad. "The record of that Sith Dark Master that boasts not only of the naivete or our children, but his murder of Galas as well!" He walked through the room, setting it before Judge Shelkar.

The judge signaled, and the panels rose again. Shaelas came over to me, bowing. "I had to assure that the children were also here. They have yet to stand as judges, and this experience will do them good." I nodded.

The panels dropped. Shelkar faced me. "It is the decision of this court that the woman acted in the best interests of the Selkath people. We move to-"

"Your honor, I ask a brief moment." I interrupted.

"Woman, you are about to go free. I see no reason to delay that." Duula snarled

"I ask the court to meet in camera, with only myself my droid, and other Selkath present. What I have also discovered is of interest to the Selkath people, and need not be trumpeted to the Galaxy at large."

Shelkar stared at me. "This court is adjourned to be reopened in camera. All people not mentioned in the request will depart." The bailiffs pushed everyone toward the door. Bastila looked adamant, but I signaled for her to go. The doors slammed down, and Shelkar gaveled the court into session again.

"I have been told by Councilor Shaelas that all councilor must sit as judges as well, to assure that any criminal acts by a judge can be considered violations of their own oaths of office. This is a noble effort to limit the corruption courts in the Galaxy face every day. I applaud this court in that decision.

"There is proof that one of the judges empaneled here has acted secretly in a manner to remove the problem of the warring factions from this planet. While his act may be perceived as good in the whole, he does not have all of the information. The plan as it has been given to him, is that both factions be ordered off Manaan. All consignments of Kolto for each are to be carried by Czerka Corporation, which is a Republic corporation with links on planets on both sides of the conflict."

"Duula we have heard enough of your ranting about this. You appear to stand accused by this woman." Naleshekan said.

"I still stand by it! We cannot remain neutral if both sides sit upon our planet! As you all know, I would gladly deny both sides Kolto if I did not feel that one side or the other would try to capture it if we did."

"Judge Duula, please listen. T3, play the correspondence between Ambassador Kolorid and the Czerka Representative on the planet." The droid rolled out. He didn't play it all. Just the relevant portions. The judges stared at their compatriot as the Czerka rep complained that while 25% losses to Sith attacks would have been acceptable; the 45% demanded by the ambassador would cause an investigation that might reveal their duplicity.

"So a Republic corporation lies to it's own government! So what!" Duula screamed. "It's like the lies from the Republic about Taris!"

"Lies? Your honor, my vessel was one of those that escaped from Taris. What you will see is the recordings made by my ship in our escape from that world. T3."

The little droid should have been working for a news agency. A holographic representation of the system flashed up. The massive blob of Taris rested in the middle of a series of red arrow shapes. Each marked with a Sith designation, and name. He paused the picture, to show the fleet in it's entirety. Then began a playback from our own sensors. _Ebon Hawk _was circled with a green line, all others not Sith in blue, as was the planet, the color used for neutrals. Fire swept down from the skies, ships attempting to escape were shattered as they ran toward the fleet, hoping to get past them. Along with the com chatter of all those ships, we heard the com channels frequency jumping as stations below suddenly shut down, people on the ground saying that they surrendered, that they were innocent, that they would even swear alliance, or simply begging for mercy as the guns not aimed at the ships smashed their world. _Ebon Hawk _broke through, and I could see that only two or three had succeeded as we did.

I was reliving it, and I cried as ship after ship died. As North City collapsed into ruin, followed by South City. I didn't have the time to see it when it had occurred, and it was a knife in the gut to me.

The replay ended, and I found myself sobbing. Maybe Gadon and his Beks had survived. Maybe Gendar and his Outcasts. No one else could have.

The Selkath were stunned. Duula looked at the empty space before them, his eyes haunted. "I move that Czerka Corporation be banned from all business dealings on Manaan. That all contracts with said corporation be held in abeyance until this conflict has ended."

I bowed to them, and left them to their deliberations.

Bastila came up to me, and I hugged her tightly, burying my head against her chest. "But, you wanted breakfast!" She protested.

"No. Just, hold me for a little while." I whispered. "Keep the chill of hell from me."

Rift

Bastila

I found myself holding Danika on a bench near the court. The bond between us had become both more tenuous, and deeper. I wasn't getting every emotional mood swing, but when I did it was like being flooded with dark waters. She had gone from the calm perfect Jedi to this crying child just within a few moments. What exactly had set it off, I don't know. But she felt as if she was an admiral that had won a great victory, but at a horrendous cost. She felt a bottomless shame that she no, that we the crew of _Ebon Hawk _had survived.

I held her, murmuring gently into her hair as she cried. My presence, my feelings along the link helped her. I didn't feel anger with her at this reaction, or nervousness that I was holding a woman four years older than I was as I did. I was the mother bosom to her, the place where even the bravest of ancient man went for succor when life gets too harsh.

Yet she didn't slip toward the dark side. She had reacted; using the Force to grasp Tolan's heart, yet she made herself turn away from killing with the Force without even a thought. I felt so proud of what she had become in such a short time. Yet the pride was shot with dread. We had to go to Korriban next. To the dark heart of the Sith itself. Only then could we go even deeper into the abyss. To wherever the Star Forge was. She sighed, and giggled. "What is so funny?" I asked.

"Considering where my face is, I suddenly had an urge to ask for some cookies."

I suddenly understood what she meant, pushing her aside. "You are incorrigible!"

"I hope not." She said. "You're the only person that has kept me on a even keel so far." She shook her head, and dried her eyes. "All right, back to normal." She stood. "We have an ambassador to see."

"Not yet." I said. She raised an eyebrow at me. "You are going to sit down, eat some breakfast, have some more tea, and relax for at least an hour."

She looked at me. "Yes mother."

"Don't get cute with me, you, yokel!"

"Such language." She murmured.

We sat for the time specified, and she ate enough stew to make Canderous sleepy. After polishing the bowl with the last of her bread, we walked to the Republic embassy.

Ambassador Wann came toward us. "Did you get it?" He demanded? Danika tapped T3, and held out the data cube the robot spat out. "Excellent! I will have our technicians assure that it has not been tampered with."

"Now the answer to my questions."

"You Jedi, always so forward!" He chuckled, then his face went cold. "Since you are Jedi, I can trust you with this. Please, come to my office." He led us into a room, then closed the door. I could feel the hum of an anti-snooping field. "As you know, we are fighting a life and death struggle against the Sith. You may also know that we aren't doing too well. We need much in the way of supplies, and nothing can be allowed to delay those supplies. Manaan is the only source of Kolto in the galaxy, and we need it desperately. Frankly, we need all we can get."

"It sounds like you are about to tell us of an indiscretion." Danika said.

"The conservatives have a majority in the Council at present, and they want the planet to remain neutral, to sell to both sides. But there are more far looking people on the council. They know that if the Sith win, there is nothing that will stop them from taking over anyway. So we made a deal."

"You violated the treaty?" Danika asked.

"Not as such. The agreement was to assist the Selkath in the gathering and processing of Kolto. The Selkath still use the methods their ancestors have used for centuries, seining Kolto that floats to the surface, then refining it. However right before the war began, a survey submersible found where the Kolto floats up from. It is called Hrakert Rift. An abyss about 20 kilometers from the city, half a kilometer from the surface with the rift itself diving over 11 kilometers into the depths. Kolto forms there in underwater volcanic vents, and breaks free to float upward. The rock formations at the top and sides of the rift capture a lot of it. Less than ten percent actually gets carried upward. The Selkath can dive that deep, but the Rift is also the center of an old religion here. Normal mining by them would violate several taboos.

"So last year we offered to set up a facility to gather and process the Kolto underwater. I don't know how much you know about Kolto refining...?" He paused until we shook our heads. "Most of the raw Kolto paste is lost between the ocean floor and the surface. The native wildlife loves it. The raw paste has to be refined four times. Every time you do, it's bulk is reduced to ten percent. That means 100 kilos of raw Kolto paste makes 100 grams of medicinal grade Kolto. We found that we can do the refining down there, which means instead of having to move that 100 kilos, we just have to transport 100 grams. We will have increased their production capability by almost one thousand percent when it is fully online, though at present we've only increased it by about two hundred percent. "

"But something happened." Danika pressed.

"Yes. A few days ago, as the final section of the facility was being installed, the base reported that they had found some kind of structure. An obelisk right where the last section was being assembled. They were hours from beginning operations. Then suddenly we lost contact. No more communications."

'What happened?"

"We don't know!" He sighed. "I sent what troops I could spare, about three squads, down to assist. No word back. We began hiring mercenaries, and began sending them down, but none of them have returned either. We finally had the droid the Sith captured sent here, and deployed it. All we've been trying to do is contact the base again!" He sighed. "Now that we have the data, we still don't know what to do. The Sith don't know exactly what we're up to, but they've been hiring mercenaries at twice what we pay just to stop us from hiring more.

"Then you came with the mention of an ancient artifact. Probably what we found. If you know a way to get past this mess, I am duty bound to assist you."

"How can I get down there?" Danika asked. She was pale.

"We have a submersible, one of the personnel transports we have been using to tend the station. There is room for a crew of five. It will automatically home in on the station, and take you right there. I haven't got any more troops I can spare to send with you, though."

She took the card, her hand trembling. "We can leave immediately." She stood. "Where is the sub bay?"

He directed us, and Danika walked out. "What's wrong?" I asked.

"I don't like being in an enclosed space that tight." She admitted. "I can handle it when I'm in a ship, but something this small... I don't know."

"I'll be there with you." She looked at me gratefully.

The submersible was smaller than I had thought. Danika looked at it as if it were her coffin, but climbed in without demur. T3 rolled down into one of the open slots, plugging into the systems, bringing them up. I climbed down, and the hatch slid closed.

Water flowed up the clear canopy as the sub began its dive. We entered a green expanse of light, and fish swam by us as we dove toward the bottom. A huge pillar fifty meters across swept by to our right, then we were in the open sea. The light faded as we went deeper. Suddenly a Firaxa swam by, snapping at us. The Firaxa is one of the largest ocean going predators of the oceans of Manaan, averaging five to ten meters in length.

As we got deeper, the lights clicked on. All we could see was a narrow cone boring directly ahead of us. T3 suddenly bleeped, and the sub spun on one wing. Something rushed past us. All I could see was a single eye and teeth.

Danika showed me the datapad that reported what T3 was saying.

Large concentration of Firaxa ahead. Number uncounted. Evading attacks

"What is causing that?" Danika asked.

I slid forward. There was a manual piloting system, and ahead of us circled in red on the sonar was one hell of a lot of Firaxa. "Do we have any weapons, T3?"

A listing came up. I highlighted one. "Give me control!"

The controls came alive in my hands, and I keyed up my selection. A dozen sonic grenades fell away, and I aimed us upward as the sharks charged toward us. The sub shuddered as the grenades ripple fired. The Firaxa staggered, then drifted toward the bottom, stunned. I aimed for the hole I had made, and plunged deeper. The bottom was only a few meters away, and I pulled out, missing a rocky outcropping as we did. I set the system to drop a grenade every few seconds, and ran before the wave of sharks that followed.

There was a blob marked in green, the station itself. Something the size of a cruiser was near it, and the huge shape moved toward us. I hugged the bottom, and whatever it was passed over us. It took forever to move by. At least 400 meters long, I estimated, whatever it was.

There was wreckage as we came closer. Half a dozen subs of the same design had been battered to pieces. One looked as if it had been bitten in half! We came out in a bright green bubble. Lights installed on stanchions made it as bright as 50 meters depth. Then we could see the square box shape of the main building. I tapped the controls, and saw a door open. A Firaxa came out of it, lunging at us, but we were by it, and into the bay. The door closed behind us.

I had forgotten to shut off the dispenser, and it was pure luck that I had. We came around the corner into the bay itself, and a swarm of Firaxa were there. They came at us, then stopped, ripped apart as the grenades went off behind us in the enclosed space. We shot upward, coming up into a moon-pool dock. The engines hissed, then died. As the canopy came back, we saw a scene of carnage. A sub had been in the bay beside ours. It had been beaten to wreckage. Bodies lay everywhere. Most had been hacked to death, though some looked as if they had been poisoned.

Danika leaped from the sub and her breathing slowed. "I made it!" She gasped smiling.

"I knew you would." I soothed.

She shook her head, looking at me oddly. "Did you hear that?"

"What?"

"A keening sound, like a cry for help."

"No I didn't."

She shook her head again. Perhaps I am hearing things. Let's go."

We walked toward a door. It had been locked, but T3 opened it without trouble. A Twi-lek in a mercenary uniform lowered his blaster when he saw us. "We have to get out of here, now!"

"Wait. We're here to rescue you." I said.

He laughed hysterically. "Then rescue me!"

"We have to find out what happened first." Danika tried to sooth him.

But her words only made him angry. "They're all dead, the entire mission is a bust, and I want-"

"Soldier, is that a proper report?" I had never heard that I Will Be Obeyed voice from Danika before. The mercenary snapped to attention.

"Sorry, sir, no excuse, sir."

"Identify yourself and report your assignment."

"Bastan Twill. Hired along with four others to rescue the people down here, sir."

She nodded. "Continue."

"It's all confusing, sir. The Selkath seem to have gone mad, and began killing everyone before we arrived. My team was one of two. The other was led by Colin Faris, ten of us in all.

"Our teams moved through the building, but we were ambushed every step of the way. I don't know how many Selkath were working here, but we killed maybe a hundred and still they kept coming. Captain Faris got cut off from us with one other survivor down by the locks that lead outside. The survivors of our teams were pushed back, until I finally locked that door. When I did, I was the only one left alive."

Danika nodded. "Stand easy, soldier, we're taking over." She said. I could picture a team of a hundred troops behind us ready to join us as she said that. So could Bastan. He sagged.

"You stay here, guard the way home. We'll take care of it."

"If you say so. But begging your pardon sir, if you didn't bring heavy weapons, You're going to get reamed."

She smiled at him. "We'll manage." She went to the door. "T3, crack it."

Danika

The instant I saw that mercenary all my fears fell away. I was back in my element, a ground pounder taking charge. The man we left guarding the sub was calmer, ready to fight again.

"How did you do that?" Bastila asked. "I didn't feel any of the Force in your words, but he relaxed almost immediately!"

"I told you that you underestimated those without the Force. All I did was what an officer that saw him in that condition would have done. Stiffened his spine. When everything goes to hell, it's that officer standing there as if he knows he's going to live forever that takes you forward." The door opened into a docking tunnel attached from the docking bay to a vast structure beyond.

We reached a computer console, and T3 tied into it. "Any thing moving?"

Statistically everything is in constant motion thanks to molecular displacement. Care to be more specific?

"Smart ass. Scan the facility. What life forms are moving? Include Droids in that before you start to complain."

There were droids wandering the halls. They were on full wartime footing, meaning that without an access code, we would have to destroy them. I wasn't being charged for damages, but time was of the essence. T3 locked them down.

The halls were clear because just about every room in the station was filled with Selkath. They all had glazed eyes, flinching occasionally as that sound I could almost hear echoed again and again, wandering around without purpose. For a moment, I felt perhaps there was no danger, but right about then a human in a lab coat made a break for it from where he had been hiding in a locker. Every Selkath within ten meters charged at him, and ripped him apart. Some of them stung him with spines hidden in their dewlaps. That explained the poison victims.

"T3, can you control the speaker system throughout the base?"

Affirmative. If you are going to suggest a 'sonic bullet', I would suggest a range that will not kill or harm you as well

"That is exactly what I was thinking. But I don't want to kill the Selkath either if we can avoid it."

Setting; Human lethal range locked out. Trying sub-sonic settings that will affect the Selkath but are not dangerous to humans

I felt a rumble in my feet, and twisted my head. Non-lethal doesn't mean it didn't hurt. The Selkath went even madder than they had been, slamming into walls, then collapsing. "Are they dead?"

Negative. Selkath are more resistant to sound vibrations than humans. They will be incapacitated for several hours

"All right, how do we get to the refining facility?"

Access way not completed. Entry via enviro suit

I shuddered. Bastila noticed it immediately. "Danika-"

"Bastila, remember I died in a suit. I felt the air run out. I don't... I don't think I can do that again." I stared at the ocean beyond the armorplast.

"Then I will go-"

"No. This is my problem. I must deal with it."

We walked down to the locks that accessed the sea. The one closest to my goal was locked with a password. T3 couldn't circumvent it. I would have to go through a flooded section of the station.

I shook my head. What happened down here?

We reached the emergency lock leading further. Even searching through the complex, there was only the one suit. I grabbed it. I know Bastila would have gone, but I couldn't let her. This was my fear. If I didn't face it now, I never would. I slipped on the helmet, and as it locked I found myself frantically clawing at the locking ring. She caught my hands, holding them. "Look at me!" She demanded. My eyes had closed in my panic, sure I would see star wheeling past, see the counter with only minutes remaining to live. I opened them, seeing her face right there. Plenty of air, hours. "Do you want me to go?" I shook my head frantically. "Then you have to pull yourself together. I am depending on you!"

I shuddered, nodding. She attached a small device to the arm of the suit. "I was reading the data files while you suited up. They used these to drive away Firaxa. Use it if they get too close." I nodded again. I knew if I opened my mouth I would be begging to get out of this damn suit, let her do this!

She stepped aside, and I saw the lock door. I didn't want to go out there. Couldn't go out there! But my hand rose, and I keyed it open. The door closed behind me and water sprayed down on top of me. I wanted to scream, but I knew she'd hear it. Hear and open the door, and go instead. I couldn't let her do this. I had to!

The exterior door opened. The room beyond looked like the one I had just left except it was flooded. As I waddled into the room beyond, I heard someone cursing. From the sound he had a lot of experience cursing on a lot of other worlds.

"Report." I said.

"Who is that?"

"Danika Wordweaver. We're here to rescue you."

"Yeah about a day too effing late if you ask me." He snarled.

"Faris?"

"Yep, that's me. Captain in the Republic infantry no less, once upon a time."

"I only reached sergeant." I replied.

"Then they're scraping the bottom up there."

"No. My commission is less than six months old."

"Oh, new meat to tell me what to do?"

"Nothing of the kind, Captain." I replied. The Riffed troops from the last war were still sensitive. "I'm new. Got a sitrep for me?"

"S-BAR." He rasped back. "I went in with nineteen, and now I'm the only one left.

I translated it as Screwed Beyond All Repair. "No, Bastan Twill made it back to the lock."

"Then that's a 10% survival ratio. Not at all good." I heard a ping, and my suit read it. Another suit, 20 meters to my left.

"It's something. I was at Zanebra and we lost more than that."

"You mean someone survived that goat rape?"

I waddled toward him. "You're talking to one of them. What were you planning?"

"The bug-out boogie. I can't get through the building; those damn fish are everywhere. But if I get over to the lock near the boat bay, I can get clear."

"Maybe so, sir. But what about the people in the Harvesting section?"

"They can wait for backup with some serious firepower. Maybe some heavy weapons." I came in sight of him, and he was already heading into a section that was solid. "I blew the walls to flood this area when the fish went bananas the second time. We had orders not to hurt them. I think I'll throw that goat rapist in the sub for that mission."

That made sense now. This area should have been open, but the walls and fixtures were definitely not designed for immersion. I passed a body that had been slammed into a wall hard enough to almost weld it. I came around the corner, and Faris was jumping out onto the ocean bottom through a ten-foot gap in the wall. "Come on. Just watch out for-"

As he spoke, something huge came from the side, catching him like a near-trout catching a fly. Blood sprayed as it powered away from the opening. I came to it, watching his legs float back to the bottom. The Firaxa that had taken him was a lot bigger than the average mentioned.

I closed my eyes. I could hear my breath, and frantically looked at the gauge. I still had seven hours. I mentally made my heart slow down. The mud was right there. I looked at the sonic projector mounted on the glove. I silently prayed as I took that last step. It was clear for the moment. I checked the map I had. The harvester section was to my left about thirty meters. The connection to the main section was on the other side of it.

I started waddling that way. This suit was not made for rapid movement. I mentally attached jets, props, hell, while I was imagining, a damn hyper drive to it, but my mental manipulation did not supply the equipment. A Firaxa bulleted toward me, and I hit the projector. The animal froze as if I had prodded it, then turned and shot away. I grinned, and every time I saw one of them I hit it with a shot. I reached the door, and had started it cycling when something made me spin and trigger it. A Firaxa spasmed less than a meter from me as I fell through the hatch.

I sobbed as the water came down, pulling off my helmet as soon as if was clear. Recycled air, but it wasn't inside a shoebox damn it!

I climbed out of the suit, and drew my light saber. It wouldn't have worked under water, but I wished it would. I keyed the inner hatch, and was swinging before my target was in view. Three Selkath were there right at the door, and all were down before they even knew I was there. I staggered past them, and went hunting. The sonic bullet T3 was using didn't reach here. There were half a dozen more, and I dealt with them. I found a map of the harvesting section, and noticed that the control room was off by itself. I went that way, and found a force field in my way. I found the intercom, and flicked it on.

"Hello! Is anyone in the control room?"

I heard someone scream then a fan above me kicked in. I felt the air being pumped from the room. I lit my lightsaber, and punched it into the wall near one of the control nodes for the force field. It shorted out, and suddenly I could breath again. I stormed forward. There were two people in the room. The woman started crying. She kept repeating. "I'm sorry." as I stalked toward the console The man came to her side, and laid his hand on her shoulder.

"Sami just panicked We heard your voice, and she thought the Selkath had gotten into the control room."

I nodded, relaxing. "I hope my voice really isn't that raspy." I said. Sami smiled a little at that. "I'm Danika. I was sent down to investigate."

"Nomi Nolan. I was the director of this mess before it all went to hell. Sami is our science advisor. He sat at a terminal. "We haven't had contact with the surface for at least three days."

"I came originally about the artifact you discovered."

They looked at each other. "We only reported it last week. Too soon for you to have been sent."

"I knew it was here, just not where." I replied. "What can you tell me?"

"We were assembling the last section of the harvesting arm. There is an overhang, and we estimate fifty kilotons of Kolto might be trapped below it. The arm has to extend out over the rift itself and under to scrape Kolto from the underside. We were setting the foundation legs when someone spotted this obelisk just sitting there on the bottom. We didn't get a good look at it until right before everything went to hell. Here, Sami, see if we have Munroe's data feed."

She turned, and began running through the computer. Then she pointed at the large screen. Someone in a suit was waddling through the mud toward a series of lights. "When we found it, I ordered lights installed. Doctor Munroe is... I mean he was the chief of oceanographic sciences for the facility. He was heading toward it when it began."

The camera stopped as the person halted to get a better picture. A Star Map obelisk stood there thrust out of the sediment. He approached it, careful to keep it in the camera focus. Then something rose beyond it, a mass of black. Then the screen went crazy, then blank.

"We got a call from Chuck Feelis, shift supervisor. This was the last section, so we were on an all hands evolution. All but ten of our people were out there, including our cargo lifters." He signaled Sami again.

The screen became a sensor screen with a video feed of what the crew could see ahead, with green lights representing the people in suits. Two were marked as cargo lifters. One of those lit up as a voice said. "Looks like we can test the grinders without damaging whatever it is. Activating now. Impact, look at it-"

"Chuck, in the rift!" As we watched a huge blip appeared, coming up out of the rift fast. All the video feed showed was teeth in a gaping maw rushing toward them.

"Holy-" the word cut off as Cargo 1 disappeared down its throat. Cargo 2 caught a shock wave from whatever it was, slamming into a pylon, and went out as well. Red markers suddenly came out of nowhere around the men. As we watched, the lights disappeared.

"Those red markers are Firaxa. There was a sonic pulse from that thing coming up, strong enough to almost fry our sonar right before they came in. Five of our people got back into the buildings but our troubles had only started."

"We had reports from inside that Selkath had fallen, frothing. Then they suddenly began attacking our people. We watched men being ripped apart alive as we ran for here." Sami looked horrified. "Nolan got up the force field, but it was too late for the rest.

"We've been waiting for a rescue since then. There are no environmental suits in here."

"What was that black thing?"

"That is what freaked everyone out before the Selkath went crazy." Nolan brought up a scanner on the outside of the habitat we were in.

It was a Firaxa. But it was huge. "That's what, four hundred meters long?" I said in a whisper.

"About that. These Firaxa sharks don't have any natural predators except each other. They live until something kills them."

I stared at it. "And the sound came from that?" They nodded silently.

"It must live in the rift, coming up somewhere along the fifty kilometers of it to feed, because we'd never even seen it before. We think it came up here because our grinders bothered it." Nolan said. "But we can't tell anyone because we can't get out of here!" Nolan waved at the ocean. "Even if we had suits, the Firaxa have gone mad! They're attacking everything that moves out there!"

"And the Selkath are attacking everyone inside." Sami added grimly.

I nodded, keying my com. "Bastila, have T3 set that sonic shock wave he created to go off every ten minutes."

"We're moving back to the terminal."

I nodded. "Then we have to get rid of that huge shark. Any ideas?"

Sami nodded "We've been working on a repellant since the project began. The Firaxa take a man every now and then. We've tried sonic fences, turrets that fire sonic charges, sonic mines, but nothing fazes them for long. The repellant was supposed to make a smell or taste that bothered the Firaxa. But it isn't working quite right yet."

"It works well enough for that!" Nolan said. "If we can't get support, we're dead either way!"

"But the repercussions to the environment!" Sami gasped.

"I don't give a damn about an ocean I don't have to live in!"

"But it might taint the Kolto-"

"Wait a minute!" I shouted. "What is wrong with the repellant?"

"It doesn't chase them away." Sami said softly. "It kills them. Horribly."

I stared at her. She nodded. "We tested in right before everything went to hell. We had a captured Firaxa in a large tank, and dropped a small amount in the water. It caused the skin to rupture and the gills ruptured a few minutes later. We can't just let it loose in the ocean! We don't know what it will do to the other sea life, and the Kolto-"

"And the Selkath." I added. I pictured Shasha with her skin rupturing, blood spraying out. Even if it only affected the Firaxa, what would happen to an

environment without them? There were laws about this! "How large was the dose you used?"

"A milliliter in a fifty thousand-liter tank. After the test we figured one nanoliter was still toxic in the same volume."

I pictured only a liter flask. That would poison one hundred _million_ cubic kilometers of ocean! "There must be another way."

They looked at each other. "Well if the last section wasn't there, maybe it would go away again. But that is three months of work in construction, and we don't have enough explosives-" Nolan began.

"There's the hydrolium."

"Sami, the tank on the last section is five hundred liters! If that went up, the whole base would go!"

"Not if the fuel lines were started. We could turn one of the grinder heads on again, and that would put fuel in the line instead-"

"It isn't like that is much better!" Nolan almost screamed. "It could still blow the entire station to hell!"

"What is this hydrolium?"

"A sodium based liquid fuel. We use it for machinery that requires a lot of energy, but where nuclear power packs or fusion generators are contraindicated. That would heat up the nearby ocean, and we're trying to impact the ecosphere as little as possible.

"The problem is, hydrolium reacts with water. You inject a gram into the engines, and spray it with water. It releases as much energy as a block of blasting explosive. That tank is enough to level the entire base and kill everything within five kilometers from the shock wave alone!"

"Can the tank be drained off?"

"No. It's a sealed unit. The only thing it feeds to is the line to the engines."

I pictured my options. "I need some blasting explosives."

"We don't have any in here." Nolan admitted. "But a grenade could rupture a line easily enough."

"What about filling just one line?"

"No can do. It's all of them or none." Sami said.

"But the lines should rupture by themselves. When the tank sensors detect that, they should shut down." Nolan looked away as if he could see the huge bomb that tank represented. "Operative word, 'should'."

I fingered my vest. I had grenades there. "I need a bag of some kind."

I stood under the flood, trying to stay calm. Bad enough I had to set off a massive explosion, but I was going to be in the water when it happened. If the shock wave caught me, I would be pulped. Nolan had marked a small storage bay. With the door closed, it should take most of the shock without too much damage. I didn't mention the qualifier.

The door opened, and I sprayed the outside with the sonic projector. A pair of Firaxa that had been waiting for me bolted away. I waddled out, and spotted the line of deck plates they had laid out down the run of the structure. I went down them, watching for Firaxa.

The Hydrolium tank was back near the end of the new structure, the lines, barely as big around as my little fingers already attached. Nolan had said he would start one of the grinding heads when he saw me in the scanners. I moved out farther. Part of me hoped we could keep from destroying the entire thing, but I didn't have any hopes.

Ahead of me, I could hear an engine cycling, then a screeching as a grinder head was dropped to the rock, ripping Kolto from it and flinging it back into a hopper. I jumped to the top of the storage bay, and spotted the nearest hydrolium line. "All right, stop it!" I shouted. As I did a swarm of Firaxa charged into the light, headed for the grinding head. They tried to rip the head free, worrying at whatever they could reach. I saw a Firaxa begin ripping at a fuel line and instinctively leaped down, pulling the door closed.

There was a thump, and the door slammed hard, springing back open. Then suddenly the lines began to explode like demolition charges. I caught the door, and pulled it to just as the hammer of the gods slammed the shed. I was bounced around, and above me the metal of the shed began to fall apart in shards. I ripped open the door somehow and dived outside just as there was a tearing sound. A girder above me began to stretch, the metal vibrating in a tone that rose until I couldn't hear it any more, then it shattered. Across the section above me more and more girders did the same thing. Then the last 50 meters of the structure lurched, lifted the end toward me up, and dropped into the abyss.

"Danika." I looked around, dazed. Metal shards had imbedded themselves in the deck plating, some deep enough to punch through into the sediment.

"Danika, report."

I staggered to my feet. Where I stood there was the mass of the structure running back toward the base. The lines had ruptured as Nolan had predicted, but the tank had not. But in front of me the landscape had been scoured clean.

"Danika, please-"

"I'm all right." I said. "I'm heading toward the Star Map."

"Be careful."

I slogged forward. The Firaxa seemed to be ignoring me now. I reached a section just short of the Star Map when I felt something approaching. I turned and stared up.

And up.

And up.

The giant Firaxa was headed toward me, as large as a space cruiser. I felt an urge, removing my right glove, and reached up, feeling the smooth skin run across my hand as it passed above me. It seemed to enjoy that simple touch because it slowed down. For a moment I pictured the joking photos where someone stands below a cargo ship that is taking off, hands against the hull plating as if they had lifted it. I could have posed for it myself.

Suddenly I felt a sense of awe. _These Firaxa sharks don't have any natural predators except each other._ _They live until something kills them._ I pictured the goggle-eyed builders standing on a cliff face over the ocean, setting the Star Map up. Below them swam a Firaxa shark barely average in size. Then the sea had risen, the shark swimming up with it, but returning to where it felt comfortable, the trench that had been it's home. It had seen the death of that empire, and witnessed the birth of the Republic.

_Some day the Republic will fall into the ashcan of history as well._ I thought. _And thanks __to me this Firaxa will still be here, awaiting the next empire that arose maybe another 30 millennia from now._

It swam on, and I ducked as the tail fin swept by. I caught a stanchion just in time to avoid being blown off the edge of the abyss. It swam up, sweeping like a fighter coming back, then it rolled, and dropped back into it's home.

I stood there in awe for several minutes. Then I shook myself, and waddled on to the Star Map. As with the others, it seemed to sense my presence, and opened up. I recorded the data, and slid the datapad back into its case.

Suddenly I stopped. I felt something, and knew instinctively that it came down the bond I shared with Bastila. Then... Nothing.

"Bastila." I turned, waddling frantically toward the lock leading back to the base. "Bastila, answer me." I moved past the harvesting control room. "T3-"

"Oh do be quiet." A man's voice answered. "My master has use for your friend, and I can reprogram the droid. It is you I am waiting for now. Come to me, my little Jedi. Maybe you can free them?" He laughed. "All you have to do is defeat me. Come to the Sub bay. The corridor that attaches it to the main building. I will meet you there."

"If you've hurt her-"

"Oh please. No threats. Just come."

I felt rage flow through me, and locked it down hard. All it would do is distract me. I reached the door, ripping the suit off as the water dropped below my knees. I brushed my robe, then ran toward the docking bays. Around me the Selkath were waking up. I hoped their madness had passed.

I reached the door, that led into the walkway to the sub bay and when it opened, I saw a man in black armor, standing in the center of the tube, facing me. I recognized that face.

"You were on the Endar Spire. You murdered Trask Ulgo!"

He shrugged, his voice a purr. "I kill so many people for my master. It is hard to keep track." He walked toward me. "You however have become an obsession for me. Did you know that? I wasn't sure who you were when I saw you. Your friend Ulgo was good enough for that. But I knew of you before my master Darth Malak did. Before Admiral Karath told him. I am Darth Bandon, apprentice to Darth Malak." His lightsaber, a double like mine lit. "I am your doom."

He leaped, using the Force to throw him across the distance between us. Our lightsabers clashed, and I blocked as he tried to cut with the off hand edge. I kicked, and he flew backwards, flipping in midair to land on his feet. Then he reached out, and I felt his hand catch my throat with the Force. "I want to look into your eyes, see when you know your death approaches!" He screamed. "Picture Bastila as Malak's devoted slave and your Republic in ruins! I want to feel you realize all of your failures as your neck collapses!"

I pictured Bastila in chains with a slave collar and part of me broke. I growled. "Is that the best you can do? Like this, fool!" I reached out, and his eyes went wide with shock as I grabbed his throat with the Force.

"No, you can't!" He screamed as my Force-hand crushed his neck like a vice. But it wasn't enough! I pulled, and the head ripped free, flying toward me. I stepped aside as his body fell to its knees, eyes still unbelieving from beside my foot.

"If you're going to kill someone, do it; don't talk about it." I walked past his body. Bastan Twill lay dead in the next room, his head twisted completely around. I walked to him, then looked into the sub bay. Two dark Jedi stood there, and they stared at me in horror.

"Bandon-" One began. I caught them both in that same Force grip. "Ask him what happened in hell." Their necks snapped.

There was another sub in the bay. T3 sat there, shut down and forlorn, and behind him, Bastila lay on the deck plates. A restraint collar had been attached around her neck, and shackles had been linked to it then to her hands and feet. She quivered as the system fed back into her every time she even thought of moving. I opened the bands, throwing the entire thing into the water, then hugged her, cuddling her to my bosom. Suddenly it struck me what I just done. I had killed three people using the Force alone. The blackest of all the dark arts. I found I was crying. _No please, I can't become what I hate!_

She stopped shuddering, and I heard her take a deep ragged breath.

"Danika, Malak sent-"

"I know. He sent Bandon after us, and I sent him to hell." She looked up eyes wide and frightened. "No one hurts my friends." I whispered. Then I hugged her as if just touching her would heal the wound I had made in my own soul. "I'm sorry." I wailed. "He boasted you'd be Malak's slave, and I just snapped. I killed him, I killed the ones with him with the Force!" I wanted to scream, but deep inside, I knew that I would do it again. To protect those I loved I would kill anything. With whatever was at hand. "We have to return to Dantooine." I hugged her repeating, "I can't go on." over and over.

"We must go on." She whispered in return. "Trust in the Force."

She hugged me, but deep in my heart I felt a doubt that had become something I knew as fact since Tatooine. Bastila had been lying to me from the start. Betraying my trust.

But why?


	21. Manaan: Prohet, and Leviathan

Ahto City

Danika

The Ambassador was not happy. He was stunned that I'd destroyed three months of work, and they couldn't just rebuild it because the giant Firaxa would be annoyed again. Damage control was on his mind as we walked out of the embassy.

The Selkath constables that came to arrest me were icing on the cake. They surrounded us with half a dozen guards, and when we exited at the court, I could see why. There were hundreds of Selkath, all wailing outside the court. The guards used stun rods to clear the way, and considering the crowd was trying to get close enough to tear me apart, I could understand why.

The court was almost as bad. There were only a couple of dozen more here, but they made up for lack of numbers with sheer volume.

"That someone would dare to profane the holy site!" A Selkath was burbling loudly. "The person should be flayed and salted! She should be fed to the Firaxa an inch at a time-"

"We must have order." Judge Kota called.

"Everyone even remotely connected to this should be flayed!"

"I will have order!" Shelkar roared. When he didn't get it, he thumbed a stud. A blast of sound dropped the Selkath before the dais to their knees. I huddled, holding my head.

"If there is one more word I will begin having people arrested!" Shelkar warned. He saw me, and pointed before his dais. "Bring her."

I walked forward alone, stopping to face the panel.

"Selkath living near Hrakert Rift recorded a massive explosion. You are known to have been seen in a submersible headed into the Rift. This court has convened to discover why."

"The Republic Ambassador sent me to the Kolto mining facility-"

"What facility!" Duula screamed.

"Some of us have been trying to improve our methods of production." Judge Naleshekan said. "We asked the Republic to help."

"But to build on the holy site-" Onr of those in the crowd shouted.

"The holy site is the Rift itself, as you well know. Not the sea floor above it."

"But-"

"Let it be Duula!" Kota snarled. "You went to this mining facility. What occurred there?"

"The facility had almost been completed when a huge Firaxa rose from the Rift. It gave some kind of cry, and the Firaxa went mad attacking everything that moved. Selkath assigned to the facility also went mad. Most of the crew both human and Selkath have been killed in the fighting. I was advised by survivors among the humans that the huge Firaxa might return to the Rift if I destroyed the last section of the harvester, and I used Hydrolium to drop it into the Rift."

"A great Firaxa-"

"But it's only a legend-"

"Didn't she say she killed it?"

"No! The horror of such an act-"

"Kill the slayer-"

"I did not kill it!" I shouted. The room fell silent, everyone staring at me. "To me it was a magnificent animal protecting its territory. It was we who were trespassing, not it." I waved my hand, trying to put into words what I had seen.

"I would no more have killed it than I would have destroyed the entire Republic because I was angry with one person! It is older than the Republic, older than your own recorded history! I felt all I could be was a witness to it's coming. It knew this somehow. It swam over me, huge, my hand running down it's belly-"

"What, she touched it?" Someone whispered.

One of the Selkath in very drab clothing stepped forward. "You _touched_ him?"

I nodded numbly.

"With which hand?" I held out my right hand. The Selkath leaned forward, and smelled my hand.

"She did. His mark is upon her!"

"Silence, Frooke."

"I will not be silent! The Progenitor lives, and she, an off worlder has touched him! Shame upon our people that it was not one of us to receive that blessing!"

The court closed the partition. I shivered. I had feared for a moment that the priest was going to order my hand cut off for blasphemy.

The wait was long this time. I stood there, with the Selkath doing everything they could not to touch me. I was blessed and a pariah in the same body.

The partition dropped. Half a dozen more Selkath had joined them on that side.

Shelkar looked at me then bowed his head. "Woman, you do not know the turmoil you have caused among our people. The Progenitor was a myth, something only the faithful of his temple believed. Something that harkens back to when our race still burrowed in the mud of the bottom of the ocean when he would drift above us. Something we wanted to put aside." He sighed. "Something that your have reminded us of. For he is also called the soul of our world.

"Now we face the real problem. Throughout history there have been those that have been allowed to touch him, yet live. They are prophets and lawgivers in our history. Would you be such to us?" His voice held an entreaty.

"I am not worthy of such a role, Your honor."

"He thought you were, or he would have swam away rather than letting you touch him." Frooke said. "He has chosen you."

"Speak, chosen one. What would you have us do?" Kota begged.

I held the power of the entire planet in my hands at that moment. I could have ordered them to commit ritual suicide, or cast out the Sith, or anything. What I might say next would reverberate through the sector. I could feel Bastila standing beside me, her worry because she saw what a temptation it would be for me. I reached out, taking her hand. They gasped as I touched her.

"She has marked her!" Someone whispered.

"Your honors, people of Manaan, darkness flows through the Galaxy, and one of the few bright spots of light is here upon your world. Do not allow yourselves to be dragged into that struggle unwilling. If you choose to enter it, do so of your own will, but let none not of your own people demand your decision.

"You have stood, as he would have wanted, facing the future, facing all of those threats, and not shunning the consequences. What more could even a God expect?" I looked around the eyes of the crowd. "Go forth and do good for others, for your people, for yourselves. Do not act from greed, act from compassion."

I bowed. "Go with your god, people of Manaan." There was a sigh as I turned and led Bastila out of there. The crowd outside had fallen silent, and this time we didn't need guards. Hands brushed my clothing, eyes tried to catch mine. A father held up his child to see me, and the young boy waved hesitantly. I smiled and waved back. The boy almost shrieked in delight, wriggling until he was put down. He ran over, taking my hand.

"Please! Take me with you chosen one!"

I knelt, rubbing his head with my right hand. The crowd sighed. "No. Grow strong, grow wise, become a good judge of your people in time. I will be watching you." I pointed toward the ocean. "And so will he."

They left us alone as we went to the tram. We boarded it, and I touched Bastila's face gently. "When I saw that huge shark, I felt such awe that all my fears fell away." I whispered. "We will win, or die. But now I no longer worry that we will fail."

Half of the Selkath in the city must have tried to fit themselves on our route to the ship. I walked the halls ignoring them. Not because I felt they deserved to be ignored, but I didn't want a repeat of the child in the courtyard. We didn't have enough room aboard for all of the disciples I could have gathered.

The vender that had sold us the sweets for the children ran up, pressing a two-kilo bag of them into my hand. "For the young ones."

I bowed my head. "Thank you."

"No, thank you for bringing our faith back to us."

We reached the _Ebon Hawk _finally.

_Ebon Hawk: _

Enroute to Korriban

Bastila

I came aboard _Ebon Hawk_, almost running to the berthing area. I fell to my knees. I had to meditate, I needed to meditate. I had to understand what was going on in my mind, in her mind!

But that center of peace wasn't there. I was buffeted by her emotions, and mine as well. Bad enough that I had problems dealing with my own, now her emotions also swept over me. She had such clear emotional thoughts and reactions. Not muddied like most people I had met. Each emotion and the thoughts attached to it were a single jewel in a myriad of color. I could touch each and feel it as if it were my own. In fact her emotional existence was clearer to me than my own. Her anger not with Bandon but with herself for slipping even incrementally toward the dark side was like a black diamond in it's brilliance!

I felt a hand on my head, and peace flowed. "Jolee, I can't do it any longer." I whispered. "Help me."

"You have to let it go then. Talk to her, break the bond."

"I can't!" I wailed in anguish. "I've tried, but we must do it together! What if we fail because I beg her to break it with me?"

"What if we fail because you didn't?" He asked.

"I can't stand it! I could double think myself into oblivion!"

"Welcome to what the masters deal with all the time." He said. "Why do you think I stayed hidden for all those years? I didn't want to be a master, and they didn't want me to become one."

"It couldn't be that simple." I retorted.

"Of course not. Nothing ever is."

"She killed three Sith with the Force down there, she ripped Bandon's head off when she did! Yet she was more horrified by what she had done than I was. Please, can you help me at all?" He didn't bother to answer.

It would be two days to Dantooine. Two of the longest days of my life. Danika was feeling something I couldn't touch. She was blocking me better than I had blocked her before. She would watch me, as if she was hoping I would say something, but I stayed mute. Once this mission was over, I would break this bond and do everything I could to get as far away as the Galaxy permitted.

But there were still the dreams...

_I found myself in the jungle of Deralia. I could hear, no I could feel the life scuttling through the dense underbrush. I heard a noise, and walked toward it. I came to a clearing, and there were huge barrel shaped bodies with ribbon wings along the sides floating in midair as they gently sculled about the clearing. _

_ "Those are Tirlat." I turned and Danika was there. She was dressed in shorts with a sleeveless shirt as when she had been a child, as was I. She motioned for me to follow, and we climbed the tree. She looked at me, her hand touching my cheek. "In all our dreams, this we have never done. The happiest memory I have. I feel I can show it to you now." She gripped my hand, and as one huge body began moving below us She said, "Now!" We dropped together. We landed on its back and she flung the line in a practiced motion, making the weighted end spin down and around the neck. She caught the loose end as I dropped down to sit with my legs straddling her, my arms around her waist. _

_ The ribbons stiffened into blades, and the Tirlat tried to escape. The wings came up then down in a powerful thump, and we shot forward. I clutched to her desperately at the sudden acceleration. It was strange and wonderful at the same time. I found myself leaning into her, my hands against the front of her body, my head turned to lay against her back. I had never felt such joy or contentment in my life. _

_ It was timeless, and too short. She maneuvered the beast back to the clearing, and at her call we rolled back off the broad back. We landed, me flat on my back, her kneeling above me. We were both giggling in our exhilaration. She had a slight sad smile on her face as that laughter finally died._

_ "In all the time we have spent in the bond you have never told me why you started it."_

_ I tensed. "What?"_

_ "I know you created the bond, Bastila. I think I have always known, I just don't know why. There is more, but you haven't told me." She touched my face gently. "I want to know, but I can't help but feel that it frightens you. I won't push. When you are ready, you can tell me. I trust you with my mind, and with my life." She sighed. "I an afraid, Bastila. Sinking to the depth I did in killing Bandon and his men frightened me more than you might realize. I fear that we will win, but you will have to do something for me."_

_ "Anything, Danika."_

_ "Be ready to kill me." I know we will win. Malak will be defeated, but I feel that I will lose myself in the process."_

_ I sighed. "Danika, you're right. The truth is-"_

I felt myself slamming into the bulkhead. There was shouting, and I could see by the chrono that it was ship-night. I threw on my robe, and ran toward the cockpit. As I turned toward the cockpit through the mess hall, Danika joined me. She had a look that promised ill tidings for whoever had awakened us.

Carth was at the controls, checking the readings. "Gravity well. Big one. What-" He stared at the proximity detector alarm. "A big ship. Canderous, can you see it?"

"An _Interdictor _class cruiser!" Canderous answered. "Looks like the _Leviathan_."

"_Leviathan_." Carth snarled. "Saul's flagship. They're locking on a tractor beam." He shut down the engines. "We're caught."

I found myself looking at Danika. She stood there, eyes closed. "All hands to the mess hall. We have what, five minutes?"

"Try three." Carth said.

"Then we don't have a lot of time."

Everyone was awake, standing there with eyes wide with shock. Danika immediately took charge. "We've been caught by the Sith. I know that Karath knows about Bastila and Carth if they run our ID. If he does, he'll also have my file as well. But the rest of you he might not know about. We have to plan how we're going to escape right now, leaving the three of us out of the equation."

"I am very good at concealment." Juhani said. "If I slip off the ship after they have captured the rest of you, I can find my way to the holding cells and release you."

"Yeah, but they have three sections of cells." Carth pointed out. "The Interdictor Class was designed for blockade work. You can catch a lot of prisoners when on that duty. Five cells per holding area guard posts in each section, and each with their own computer access."

"So we need more strings for our bow." Jolee said. "I can sway the mind of one of them. If there's more, I'm in trouble"

"What about medical units?" Canderous asked.

"Why?"

"We Mando'a are different from humans. Our immune systems and adrenal glands are under our control with proper training, and we heal faster than a normal human. If I were to set off a concussion grenade in the engine room, I could knock myself unconscious. They'll take me to sick bay instead of a holding cell. Hopefully I'll get one of those idiot med techs that think Mandalorian are normal humans. When I wake up they'll find out otherwise."

"Alternative suggestion: I have an alternate emergency power source, so I can appear to be deactivated." HK said. "Most people do not know my internal workings, so they will probably take me to the repair shop for reprogramming and powering up. My sensor systems will notify me when I get there, and I can power myself back up and deal with them. I can also dismantle T3 sufficiently that they think he is under repair. He should end up in the same repair bay."

"As for getting out of tight spots I'm a wiz at it!" Mission said. "All I need is to badmouth a guard enough that he puts me in a separate section and cell."

"If they don't kill you." Zaalbar warned.

"They won't." Mission answered smugly. "Little girls may get slapped around, but they aren't going to blow me away when they might have fun with me first!"

"Mission!" Danika was appalled.

"Hey, if you wanted to stop that kind of thing, you would have had to find me a week after Griff left." Mission looked haunted. "But I found out that when a man is thinking with that," she pointed down, "His brain isn't engaged."

"As you know I am a master of Jedi concealment, and scion of a hunter race. I can move unnoticed to the lift section that feeds these cells." Juhani said.

Danika looked to each face, then at Sasha. "Sasha, _Berani li soope_."

"_Sho_!" She curled her fingers into claws. "_Malpali_!"

"_Sho_!" Danika snapped. Then she knelt holding the girl. "_Abd de koolarti. Soope. Pres Kali_?"

"_Ya_." She whispered. Then she ran toward the cargo bay followed by Juhani.

"You told her to hide." I said.

"But she is a warrior born." Canderous said approvingly. "Her answer was to kill them all."

"I wish it were that easy." Jolee said. There was a thud against the hull, and we all looked up.

"If you need something specific, get it now." Danika ordered.

_Leviathan_

Action report

_ Members of the 4th Order boarded the captured vessel identified as merchant vessel _Ebon Hawk _when it was brought aboard. The crew of that vessel, who lowered the ramp rather than forcing us to breach it, facilitated this. _

_ However everything did not go smoothly. One crewperson, a Twi-lek girl assaulted one of the troopers, soaking him in a rather vile concoction from their galley. Another, a human male, had attempted to blow up the ship's hyper drive system, but only succeeded in injuring himself._

_ Captured were three human males, two human females, a Twi-lek female and a Wookiee male. Two droids were discovered in stages of repair. One was an astromech design, the other appears to be an HK model. Both disabled._

_ One of the women was discovered to be the Jedi Bastila. The other is listed as the companion of one Lieutenant Carth Onasi, Republic Navy on Taris. One of the men was identified as this Carth Onasi. These three were sent to Maximum security holding central._

_ The injured human male has been sent to the Prison sickbay in Central corridor. The droids to maintenance on C deck. The female Twi-lek physically assaulted Captain Omari, kneeing him in the crotch hard enough that he also went to medical. The girl has been sent to Starboard holding. The Wookiee and the other human male have been sent to Port holding._

_ Report ends._

Admiral Saul Karath read the report, smirking. "Well Carth, your luck has finally run out." He looked up to the com officer. "Send to Lord Malak, Bastila and her companions captured. Give our present coordinates. Ask for instructions." He stood, pulling down his coat. "I am going to see an old friend."

_Leviathan_

Danika

They used full restraints on us similar to what Darth Bandon had used on Bastila. Each arm and leg was attached electronically to a collar around our necks. As long as we did exactly what we were told, we could move. But if we deviated even the smallest amount, the restraints would lock our muscles. We were taken to the Central holding facility directly below the superstructure, and one by one were thrust into interrogation tubes. The force fields forced us to stand upright. It was like being immersed in electrified jelly. Any movement set up a reaction in the field that balanced the energy you exerted.

A man entered. He was an older man, iron gray hair cut short under his cap. He was fit, wiry. Not a fighter, but still keeping himself in trim. His uniform was bland, only a couple of decorations marred the smooth expanse of cloth.

He stopped in front of the tubes, looking at us. "Well, Bastila. So good to finally meet you. As for you-" He glared at me, "-I'll leave your welcome to Malak." Then he turned to Carth, ignoring us.

"Well, the years have not treated you well, old friend."

"Saul." Carth gritted out.

"You really should have joined me. I could have used your level head a number of times. If you will give me your parole, I can have you out of there in a moment."

"All I want to do is rip your head off, Saul! How's that for a parole?"

"Whatever did I do to you-"

"You bombed Telos, you killed Morgana!" Carth struggled, trying to break out of the field.

Saul actually looked sad. "Oh, you were from Telos. I had forgotten. I wouldn't have hurt your wife for all the world."

"Don't get pious with me, Saul! She was on a planet, and the planet was in your way! You would have killed your own mother in that circumstance!"

"Now Carth you know I cannot direct every weapon in a battle. If I had known-"

"Spare me the hypocrisy! My wife dead, my son being raised by the Sith! What was so important that you had to betray everything you swore an oath to protect?"

Karath's eyes grew cold. "Do not presume that our friendship will protect you if I get angry, Carth. I was saving my own life."

"From what?" Carth laughed. "Did Malak and Revan come in the night and threaten you?"

"No the Republic was going to destroy my life." Saul growled. "Remember what it was like when the Mandalorian wars started? The incompetents that we were saddled with? The ones that defended the wrong place, attacked the wrong target, and blamed their subordinates for their failures? When the Jedi took over most were shuffled into positions where they couldn't do any harm, but they lived. Those competent men we fought alongside died and those incompetent bastards lived and moved up the promotion list.

"When the war ended, and Revan and Malak went in search of the Star Forge, there was no one to protect us any more. The Republic Senators used their authority to reinstate those has-beens, and whom do you think they had to displace? Only Admiral Dodonna was safe, but she had been to school with all of them hadn't she? Born into their clique as well!

"But not 'good old Saul Karath', oh no. The son of a farmer, a Maverick officer, what weight did that carry with officers that lived and breathed privilege? They couldn't fire me, they couldn't retire me, so they decided to 'promote' me. They showered me with medals, and said that after that last cruise, they were assigning me as commandant of the Academy." He growled again, and raised his fists. "Can you see me wiping their children's noses, and trying to dun military history and tactics into those thick skulls? Neither could they! They wanted me to retire, or live out my life as a round peg in a square hole they had rounded out just for me!

"I, who led a quarter of the fleet at the end! Who stood just below Revan and Malak as a leader! Who had to save their butts time and time again before the Jedi came to our aid? I was to become a non-entity!" There was a glint of madness in his eyes. "But Malak saved me. He sent a messenger to me and promised me a command as long as I lived. He admired my skill, and didn't intend to stuff me off into a wasted position."

Carth sighed. "So to keep from getting old, you stuffed my planet and my people, my wife into the meat grinder to prove your loyalty."

"I am not old! I wasn't too old to teach you everything you know!"

"I know that, Saul." Carth said sadly. "I looked up to you. I would have died for you. And you repaid me with murder."

They looked at each other, old and young, and I wished I could reconcile them. But there was too much pain for even a Jedi to break through. Karath shook himself, then looked at the two of us, now ignoring Carth. "The Dark Lord has been apprised of your capture, and I have no doubt he already has tortures aplenty for all of you. But since he is not here, I will merely have to fill in. Give them a taste of their future."

I felt something reach into me, and try to rip out every organ simultaneously. Both Carth and Bastila echoed my cry of pain. Then it was gone.

"That is merely a taste of what you will endure. I would like some information to give to the Dark Lord when he arrives, and you will give it to me."

"Don't waste your breath asking, Saul!" Carth rasped. "We won't tell you anything!"

"I don't expect you to, Carth. But I happen to know one of your friend's loyalties have proven in the past to be much more, flexible." He nodded toward me.

"What are you talking about?" I demanded.

"Dear girl, I am doing the interrogating. I will ask the questions, you will answer." He turned, now focusing his attention on me. "It is time to put your loyalty to the test. I doubt you would break if I tortured you personally. Your will is much too strong to give that easily. However even a hero has a soft spot. With most it is seeing their companions tortured in their stead.

"Bastila is to be left alone, but there are no such restrictions on Carth. So I ask you this. Which is more important? Carth's life and well being? Or your precious mission?

"I will begin. Every time you refuse to answer a question, Carth gets punished for it. Every time you lie, I will punish him. I may just punish him-" He held up a hand and Carth screamed in agony. "-Just because I can. Shall we begin?"

"I won't betray the Jedi. Even to save myself." I said.

"Don't tell him anything!" Carth shouted. He spasmed as the field slammed down again.

"So brave, and so stupid. Now, where is the Jedi Academy you trained at?" I just stared at him. He sighed, raising a finger. Carth screamed, then sagged. "I wasn't merely going to ask you questions, dear girl. I know the answer to many of them, and I use them to test you. All you did was hurt Carth unnecessarily. I know you trained on Dantooine. We have destroyed that Academy, and the Jedi there are no more. Nothing remains but smoking ruins and the charred remains of your masters."

"No! You're lying!"

"What you believe is incidental. We destroyed that pustule of Jedi filth, and now all those that even know about your mission are dead. You are all that's left, and you will tell me.

"What was your mission? Why did the Jedi send you? What plan did you have to stop the Sith Armada?"

I shook my head. When I heard Carth scream again, I looked at him. If someone suffers because of you, never close your eyes, or turn away. Remember and honor their sacrifice. He begged, words strung in the screaming.

As he sagged, Karath walked over almost close enough to touch except for the force field "What kind of monster can simply listen to him being tormented? What manner of friend are you to him?"

"What manner of 'friend' apologizes for murdering his wife then torments him?" I flared back. "Your insane, Karath. Death will merely end your misery. You made a bad bargain joining the Sith, and are running, desperate just to stay in place because attacking Telos burned all your bridges! So don't give my your sanctimonious crap about what kind of Monster _I_ am!

"Throughout history people have threatened the innocent, telling those they demand concessions from that it is their fault if they won't submit. It's a lie, and always has been! Since we are going through this for your enjoyment, just torture us and have done!."

He raised a hand. This time the torture seemed to go on forever. Then Carth sagged in the field even though it still snapped. "I would have expected him to pass out much sooner than that. There aren't many that can take such pain, even for brief intervals.

"You are right. I am wasting my time. However when the Dark Lord gets here, you will find that my methods are hugs and kisses in comparison. So I will leave you with yet another taste of your future."

The field ripped at me, and I screamed. My throat was raw when I finally passed out.

I found myself staring at the bulkhead, and just blinking hurt. I must have whimpered because Bastila spoke. "Don't try to move too quickly. Admiral Karath had the guard torture you long after you passed out.

"Saul has become some sort of perverted monster." Carth said. I could hear the denial in his voice. It might be his enemy, but why would he have changed so drastically?

"Carth, the Dark side of the force infects everyone around a Dark Lord. Once a normal person begins that journey, there is no telling the depths they will sink to. I fear he has been lost forever." Bastila replied.

"There is always the chance of redemption, Bastila. Even for such as him." I said.

She smiled sadly. "I think you are correct in that. When you face such unbridled cruelty, it is hard to consider their redemption. I think I am still reacting to the destruction of the Academy."

As she said it. I suddenly felt that loss. It was as if I had lost a tooth, and only as my tongue rolled across the gap could I sense it.

"I would like to believe that Admiral Karath was lying to us, but I could feel it when his words brought my attention to it. We should have felt such a great loss through the force. I fear the Dark side has grown so strong that they were able to hide it from us. I can only hope some of them survived. Vrook, Vandar, Dorak, Zhar. Some of them must have survived." But her tone denied that possibility.

"None of that matters if we can't get out of here!" Carth said.

"Where is Karath now?"

"He mentioned that Lord Malak is on his way here. I think Saul went to prepare for Malak's arrival. He probably won't bother to mention how his interrogation failed."

"It was fortunate you were able to resist his interrogation, Danika. Even the smallest amount of information could be vital."

I hate to admit it, but there was a time there where I wished you would tell him everything." Carth said.

"What I did or said didn't matter. He was going to torture us anyway." I said.

"I've known him for years. You are probably right. The entire interrogation was a sham. He just wanted a reason to torture us. To torture you, before Malak arrived." He shook his head wearily. "But why just you? What did he mean?"

"Bastila, what were you going to tell me in the dream."

"We don't have time for that now, Danika."

"Saul seems to think he knows me. So did Darth Bandon. And they weren't the first. What is going on?"

"Danika, once we are back aboard the ship, I will answer all your questions." She stiffened. "Do you feel that?"

I had sensed it too. As if a great predator had opened it's eyes, and was watching us. Then I felt it moving toward us fast. "Malak is coming."

"Then we had better hope someone's plan works." Carth said.


	22. The Crew That Wishes to Remain Nameless

Author's Note: The following section came from, to me, the most frustrating point in the game. The man characters are all locked away, unable to escape, and it is up to one of the NPCs to arrange a rescue. What bothered me most was everyone else was supposed to sit like a lump waiting for that one rescuer.

But I couldn't see any of them just sitting there waiting. Add in Sasha, and you get this...

The Crew that wishes to remain nameless

Juhani

I walked softly. Jedi don't use any form of camouflage. The Force is usually used instead. But the Cathar had always considered every possible in the hunt. We Cathar are renowned for our hunting prowess, using shadow and light to find places to conceal ourselves even without the Force. The others were taken, and I went after them using the air ducts until they reached the bank of lifts. There the guards split them up. Danika Carth and Bastila went first to the Central bay along with the litter carrying Canderous. The droids were sent to maintenance on C deck below them_. _Mission was taken to starboard holding then Jolee and Zaalbar were taken to port side. Each required a separate lift, a security measure that closed off direct lines of attack. meaning We would have to get together here in the main passageway afterward.

I considered which to follow. I decided to go down and find the droids first, then work my way up and forward to gather Danika, Carth and Canderous. When we reached the main passageway, We could then go down to either port or starboard for the others. I waited until halfway through the midwatch, when most of the crew were asleep.

However camouflage or Jedi mind tricks stop you from opening doors if someone is there, but the passageway I was in wasn't busy. I stood inside the bulkhead vent at the grate, watching both ways. A guard in uniform came to the lift I wanted, and hit the button. I dropped down, and stood against the bulkhead behind him. The door opened, and he died as I walked past him, dragging the body into the lift with me. I ran down the passageway, checking each door as I passed. There!

HK

System activation. Operation autonomous.

Photoreceptors active.

Target, human. Terminate. Second Target, Human. Terminate.

All Targets Terminated. Verify location T3. Activate.

What do we do now?

"Rejoinder: It seems to have worked."

Affirmative. Locate computer access. Panel off arm extended. System sliced.

"Instruction: Locate master and other crewmembers. Terminate all that stand in the way."

All?

"Sarcastic reply to stupid Question: Not us, you pile of spare parts."

Portal activated. Terminate-abort. Life Form Juhani. Follow.

Canderous

I came to as the med techs were whining about my weight. Big deal. They were using an anti-grav lifter on a flat deck to move me, not packing me across rough terrain on their backs. We entered a compartment, and they moved me from the lifter to a table. One of them was leaned over me. "Better set up a heart spike, 50 units of adrenaline." As the second one turned to get it my arms snapped up, and I caught the first one by the neck. I crushed his larynx, and he went down choking as I rolled onto my feet. The other med tech turned, and had enough time to see me before my fist caved in his skull. There were two Sith guards in uniform, and they reacted.

Perhaps against a normal human they would have had a chance. Against me there was a chance, just not a very good one. They expected me to be injured, slowed. The second died less than three seconds after the first med tech.

I really hated to use the _Confar_, the 'body slowing'. I was always a bit off for a while. My reaction time up to 3 tenths of a second instead of the usual 2. There was a sealed crate in the corner, and I laced my fingers under the lid, ripping it off. My weapons and armor were in it. Nice of them. I checked the rifle. Fully loaded.

I walked over to the hatch, and opened it. The man standing outside had enough time to know I was there before a bolt of plasma ripped him apart, I turned the corner, and the other two at the end of the passageway went down like ten pins. I charged down there, and around the corner. There was a blast door in front of me. I hissed. My weapon would cut through it, but if I did, it would set off every alarm on the ship. Then my personal come chimed. I looked at it, and grinned savagely.

Jolee

The guard had Zaalbar in restraints, but I'm an old man, so he thought he had it covered. We walked into the holding area, and he opened a field. "Get in." He snapped.

"But we are in." I said mildly. "Aren't you supposed to get out?"

"Wait, you're right. Stay here." He walked into the cell.

"Aren't you supposed to give me that?" I pointed at the key. He looked at it, then slowly disconnected it, and handed it to me. He came awake as the force field lit off.

"What the-" He stared around. "You come back here or I'll-"

"Do what? Use harsh language?" I asked. He drew his sidearm, and fired. Bad idea. He was on the deck as the bolt bounced around the bulkheads and field. It would take a while for it to expend enough energy to be safe.

The other cells were filled with people; at least a dozen all told of just about as many races. They clamored for us to let them out. I was busy with Zaalbar's cuffs.

"Give me a minute to get my bearings." I admonished them. Zaalbar had gone toward the end of the entryway, then backed up. He signaled for me to wait. Then a guard marched into view. As he turned toward me, Zaalbar came up, and picked him up by the neck. He couldn't break his neck through the armor, but after slamming him into the bulkhead two or three times, Zaalbar broke just about everything else.

We ran to a set of canisters on the wall, and found a gold mine of weapons and armor. We carried it all back in front of the cells. "For when we get the doors open." I promised.

The last compartment was marked as a guard's barracks, so we didn't go that way. Instead we turned left, heading out. There was a security compartment, and we opened the door. There were two guards, and I picked one up slamming him into the wall with the force as Zaalbar shook the other into unconsciousness. Zaalbar went to the computer console, and keyed in.

Sasha

I wanted to wail after my large Cat friend left. The wonderful moving place was empty, and bad people took my friends, my _Amma Mata_. They had moved around, poking at our things. I wanted to scream, to hurt them, to kill them! I wanted wail at my pain. My wonderful place was going to be destroyed again!

I cradled the light-beam weapon I had picked up. Not the skin burning one but one of the full powered ones. _Amma Mata_ would not be pleased when she found out I had it, but I was so angry with them! She had told me I had to be trained, but I didn't care. I would protect the wonderful place. I would kill all of them when they came!

But to do that I had to get out of here. I had to hide in the big ship. I climbed down, and opened the grill. No one was in the cargo hold, and I took the time to eat a halo fruit. _Amma Mata_ loved them, so did I. I took another, sticking it inside my robe. I would give it to _Amma Mata_ when she came back.

I stepped out into the passageway. There was an evil man there, and he saw me, running toward me to catch me. As he grabbed, I pressed the button. With a hum the blade of light shot out and through his chest. He fell away from me and I felt a savage joy at his death. If I had known how good this was, I would have stolen one from the Manlorey months ago!

No. That much of what _Amma Mata,_ Bastila and Juhani had taught was still there like a loose tooth. Kill if you must, but have no joy in that death. I admonished myself. There were ways to make their lifes a problem without killing more of them.

I ran across and down the ramp. The bay was huge, but I saw a grill and ran toward it. The vents here were larger, almost large enough for me to stand up in. I began moving down them. There was a junction box. I opened it, and saw a maze of colored wires and fiber optics. I pulled some out, ripping them. I cross wired some other ones because I felt it would be fun. Whenever I came to another junction box I ripped out other wires. Sometimes all of them, sometimes I just cut a few at random as that Force _Amma Mata_ spoke of pushed me to.

When I heard people climbing into the vents I dropped down into an empty passageway, entered another section, and went on. Then alarms sounded that I had not caused. I used the noise to move back to the wonderful place. There was the information box in the cockpit between the seats, and I touched it. I couldn't read yet, but _Amma Mata_ had been teaching me to use the one language that used pictures instead of words. I touched that panel, and began working my way through the system. There was a set of red controls at the center and I touched them. They were the guns. I touched a control that set them to fire at any movement, then pulled up the ramp.

Mission

"Get in girlie." The guard snarled, shoving me into the cell.

"Quit crowding me!" I spun around "Sheesh! Don't you Sith ever bathe? I've smelt Gamorrean males in heat that don't smell as bad."

"I would suggest you shut your trap. You're only going to make it worse for yourself."

"What, worse than putting up with a slimy Sith that smells like Rancor dung?"

"Maybe some time in solitary will teach you some respect."

"Respect is earned you Hutt slime! Who designed those uniforms? A color blind Rodian?"

"Very funny. Be sure to ask the torturer when he comes. Maybe he'll laugh while you scream."

"What, you're going to torture me?" I squeaked.

Oh, no snappy comeback that time eh?"

"No. I was just wondering what would be worse than dealing with you."

He tried to slap me, and we tussled for a few seconds. He finally threw me back into the cell, and flicked the field on. "It may be a while. We're busy torturing your friends. But we'll get to you in a while. Try to think of snappy patter for the torturer. It will make his day." He laughed as he walked away.

I rubbed my back, then pulled out the pass card I had lifted. "Or maybe I'll just walk out. I wonder when people will stop underestimating me?" I used the card to open the cell. Across from me, a Rodian looked up hopefully.

"Little girl let me out too?" He asked. I looked in the next cell. Three Rodians sat there looking dazed.

"What about your friends?"

"Too late for them. Sith use them for torture. First the Captain, then the pilot, then the navigator. All crazed with pain now. Soon me too if you leave me."

"But you'll foul my escape."

"No. Me think you too smart for that. Me trade for freedom." He reached behind him, pulling out a small tube shaped device, a hand made computer spike. "Me good with electronics. I have special Ice program. Go through any security. Put in computer, it sit up and beg for you!"

"Wait a minute. You're a prisoner! How did you get that past them?"

"Me made it before they capture us. Me hid in one place they not look-"

"Please, spare me the details." I said. I checked the cell. It was easy to bring the field down. He handed me the Ice as he pushed past me.

"Oh Eww!" I groaned. I didn't have a pocket to put the damn thing in! I went on down the passageway. There was guard, but he was tromping the other way so I slipped across. There were containers at the end and I opened them. Stun rods, armor. Things were looking up.

I picked up the stun rod. There's a way to jimmy the power electrodes, but shut down the sonic alarm and I knew it. The rod bleeped, then the tell tale glowed red. If I hit someone with this, he'd get a full charge instead of the tenth normally released. Not even armor would stop that! I slid up to the bulkhead and looked. He was still facing the wrong way.

I coughed. The guard turned, unsure. Then he walked toward me. His blaster rifle was out, and he was alert. But standing still I was a fly on the wall. As he walked past I stepped out behind him, and slapped him between the shoulder blades with the stun rod. It heated up so fast I squeaked, and dropped it. The suit of armor collapsed, and I took his rifle and a couple of grenades. Choice.

I ran down to the hatch marked Security. I popped the hatch, and was flinging grenades even as it opened. Lucky for me they didn't give the guard any frags. Just concussion and sonics so the equipment wasn't damaged. Not that it helped the two guards in the room. One was blasted off his feet. The other staggered for a few seconds until I put a mercy round through him.

I considered using the Ice, but I've been making computers sit up and beg for years. I sliced in, and began working my way through the firewalls. People forget that a firewall is great to protect against outside access, but people don't protect themselves from their own computers often enough.

I checked Central. As I did, there were a rash of weapons discharge warnings, but I killed them before anyone was notified. Canderous? If so he was headed for a hatch marked MAXIMUM SECURITY CENTRAL HOLDING and I checked where it led. According to the schematic, it was where Danika was being held. I sent a signal to his com, not verbal just a 'HI CANDEROUS' as I popped the hatch, and again covered the rash of weapons markers. Really I think Canderous needed to learn how to relax.

I checked portside, and someone was trying really ham handedly to access it. I noticed a quirk, and sent ZAALBAR?

I got back, MISSION?

Mission: THE ONE AND ONLY

Jolee: MISSION, THIS IS JOLEE. WHAT'S THE SITUATION?

Mission: CANDEROUS IS BREAKING DANIKA AND CREW OUT RIGHT NOW. WAIT ONE. ALL RIGHT. JUHANI AND THE DROIDS ARE ON THE LIFT. I SENT IT UP TO CENTRAL LOCK-UP

Jolee: WE'RE GOING TO LET THE PRISONERS HERE LOOSE

Mission: NO! IF ALL CELLS GO DOWN SIMULTANEOUSLY, THE MUTINY/ BOARDING ALARM SOUNDS!

Jolee: OH

Mission: WAIT A TICK

I considered. This big loaf of bread had a crew of almost 2800. We were outnumbered by 280 to one already. Maybe we could even the odds out?

Mission: JOLEE, REMEMBER MY BROTHER'S NAME? DON'T SPELL IT OUT OR SAY IT!

Jolee: AFFIRMATIVE

Mission: GOOD. I'M GOING TO RIG THE CELLS ON YOUR END TO COME DOWN WHEN THE CELLS HERE GO DOWN. BUT I'M ALSO CHANGING THE COMMAND KEY PASSWORD ON THE MUTINY SYSTEM TO THAT NAME

The mutiny/boarding system has only one use, to restrict movement aboard the ship in the event of a mutiny, prison break, or boarding action. Every hatch automatically locks down except for those leading to the barracks, like the one in each holding facility. The boarders or mutineers have to cut or blast their way through the ship with the officers dumping poison gas into any suspect compartments. But I changed the settings. Now _every_ blast door and hatch would lock. If anyone even thought of slicing through or blowing the hatches where they were, the system would drop poison into them.

The officers on board have the codes necessary to open the hatches, but no one else does. But that assumes the codes they have are good. In the case of a mutiny, the Captain first locks the system down, then issues new codes to officers he considers loyal.

But the only ones loyal to me were my crew, and as far as this ship was concerned, I was the skipper, senior to that Sith wannabe Karath. When I reset this, we would have access, but no one else. I let every one of our scattered people know.

I finished, then hit the button, releasing a horde of crazed Rodians and whoever was over in Portside. When I did alarms sounded, and every blast door in the place came down. I reopened those between me and the elevator, then those in Central that would have stopped us from escaping there. I hefted the rifle, setting it to burst. Now it's time to rock and roll!

Karath

The alarms sounded, and Admiral Karath looked up in annoyance. "What the hell-"

"Breakout in Starboard and Portside holding simultaneously." An officer reported. "Boarding alarm in effect."

"Get the troops from their barracks and have them deal with that."

"Yes sir." The com officer input the code, then again. "Sir, the barracks doors locked as well! The code isn't working!"

"What do you mean the code isn't working?" Karath snapped. He opened his own com panel, and input his code. Instead of a response, he got a rude word in Twi-leki. He hissed. "Guard! Begin transmitting on you command channel to the closest troops to our location. Have them transmit to those beyond your range, and keep it up until every section has reported. They are to cut through every hatch between them, and protect the ship's systems. Your men will stand ready to protect the bridge. Have the hanger deck controls disabled. Only access to them is to be here."

One of the two Dark Jedi on the bridge looked at him. "You don't honestly think they will come here!"

He wanted to wipe his forehead, but leaned back."I know Carth Onasi. He'll come. Even if he has to come alone."

Leviathan

Danika

The hatch opened, and a heavy blaster rifle ripped through the guards on our cages. Canderous walked in, and began thumbing controls.

"Good work." Carth said.

"Thank Mission." He retorted. "She popped that hatch, and even now the excrement is hitting the rotary impeller." As he said that there were alarms screaming. "Mutiny alarm. The only ones that can move are our people." As he spoke Juhani and the droids came in. We ran to the storeroom off the section where we had been imprisoned, and gathered our weapons. It felt good to be armed again. As I turned, Jolee and Zaalbar arrived. We handed out weapons all around, and took off at a dead run toward the elevator. It opened, and Mission waved us in.

"Bad news. I blocked most of the crew off, but someone on the bridge beat me to the hanger doors. I didn't think about them. We can get into the ship, but we're stuck inside."

"No. There's the control on the bridge." Carth said. "Besides, I want to have a word with our host before we get out of here."

"We had best hurry." Bastila said. "I can feel Malak approaching. I don't think any of us want to be here when he arrives. None of us is powerful enough to face a Sith Dark Lord."

"We need some kind of plan." I said.

"Surprise will have to do. Mission has cut our adversaries to a minimum. We will strike hard and fast." Bastila said.

"I'll take the others and head the other way." Canderous said. "We'll clear the route for you."

"Count me in for the bridge." Carth said.

"I'm coming too." I told her.

"Bastila nodded. "A small team can move faster. Canderous, go."

We hopped out of the lift at the lower level of the superstructure and watched it run on down. Then we moved out. The resistance was scattered, but it started to get heavier the closer we got to the bridge. We finally reached the access hatch, but it didn't open.

"Sealed from inside." Carth said. "We'll have to do it the hard way." He motioned, and we ran down the passageway to a hatch marked Secondary Bridge Access. He opened a locker, and began tossing out space suits. "There's an emergency hatch to the bridge just forward about a fifty meters. Can't be locked from the inside, it's used for evacuation. We'll get in there."

I slipped into the suit, and when the others were ready, we entered the air lock. An _Interdictor_ is so huge; it's like walking in a city. As we waddled down the outer deck fighters on patrol raced past us. I kept my mind focused on the hatch ahead. The panic I had thought I would feel was absent. The giant firaxa had done something for me on Manaan at least. The outer hatch opened, and we gathered into the airlock. As the pressure equalized, I fidgeted. I could feel the dark presence of Malak approaching, and I wanted to be away.

We dropped the suits, and went into the next compartment. There were guards. We dealt with them. Then there was only the hatch to the bridge itself. I motioned, and Carth nodded. Of us all, he could not deflect enemy fire.

Saul Karath turned as we entered. He stood near the end of the Commander's walkway, flanked by dark Jedi. There were four Sith armored troopers. Carth would have to deal with the two that flanked the door. The rest were ours.

"Congratulations on making it this far." Karath said. "Very resourceful, Carth, I see you learned my lessons well."

"All I learned from you was betrayal, Saul!"

"That isn't true and we both know it." He looked to me. "This is your final chance to surrender. Lord Malak has entered the system, and will be here in just a short time."

"He speaks the truth. I can feel him approaching."

"Surrender now and I can promise to go to him on your behalf and plead for mercy-"

"Mercy! I have seen enough of Sith Mercy!" Carth screamed.

Saul sighed. "You always did like to do things the hard way, Carth. I know he would have wanted live prisoners, but corpses will have to do." He motioned toward us.

The dark Jedi moved even as Bastila and I did. I blasted one off his feet with a Force bolt as I deflected fire from the two Sith troopers ahead of us. One went down as I deflected the shot into him, the other shot took Karath in the stomach. Then the dark Jedi was close enough to fight. He struck furiously, but I deflected another shot from the last trooper into his chest. I reached out, and the trooper lifted, spinning like dust caught in a whirlwind as I turned, cutting into the dark Jedi facing Bastila. I threw my lightsaber, the blade slicing into and through the helpless trooper then turned.

Carth was storming toward the body of Karath, his face furious. The men behind him had two smoking holes in each body, one in the chest, another in the head.

"Carth..." Karath whispered.

"He's still alive!" Bastila gasped.

"Not for long." Carth growled stalking forward. "It's time to end this!"

"Carth." I grabbed his arm. "Don't become what you hate."

"Don't you realize what he's done to me, to my life?" Carth raged. "He deserves this!"

"Becoming him will not ease your pain, Carth. He will have won if you do."

"Carth. Before I die... must tell you something." Carth knelt beside him. I moved to the access control computer, and opened the docking bay I also disabled their tractor beam with a class 1 systems sweep. It would be out of order for over an hour. Behind me I could hear an urgent whisper. "Didn't know, did you?" I heard a pained laugh. "Remember my dying words, Carth... Whenever... you look at what you thought... were your friends!"

I saw the Star Forge listed in the navigational system, but I couldn't access them. I slammed my fist on the console in frustration.

I turned, and Carth rose from the body. "He said..." He looked at me with such hatred I stepped back. "It can't be true. Damn you to hell, Saul!"

"What did he say?" I asked.

"Shut up!" He screamed at me. He rounded on Bastila. "It is true, isn't it, Bastila? And you knew! The whole damn Jedi Council knew!"

Bastila sighed. "Carth, please, it's not what you think. We had no choice! You have to understand-"

"So make me understand!" Carth roared.

"What are you two talking about?" I asked. Carth gave me a look full of venom. Bastila's was one of pity. I wasn't sure which bothered me more.

"Carth, this is neither the time nor the place. Lord Malak is not far away, and we do not have the time to argue. Please, Carth. I'm only asking you to trust me for just a little while longer."

"Carth, I don't know what this is about, but she's right about that. We can't just stand here!"

Carth nodded. "All right, Bastila." He looked at me with all of that hate. "I will trust you, Bastila, until we're out of here." His words cut me because any trust he had in me seemed to have evaporated.

"I promise you both explanations as soon as the _Ebon Hawk _is out of here."

Carth glared at me. "After you."

Canderous

We didn't have much fighting on the way to the _Ebon Hawk_. Something other than Mission had been screwing with their systems big time. A hatch ahead of us opened, and half a dozen bodies fell out in a gush of water, It was a fresher section, and the drains had refused to drain at the same time that all of the faucets had ruptured until the water pressure had burst the hatch. It would have been funny if we had the time to laugh.

As we approached the docking bay, there was the sound of weapons fire. Not just infantry weapons, but blasts that sounded like the _Ebon Hawk _was shooting. A bolt slammed through the hatch into the docking bay, and we dived for cover. Then there was silence.

I stuck up my head, and saw what looked like a major battlefield. Maybe fifty troopers had been in that bay, and what was left of them was scattered in heaps. There were piles of metal that might have been heavy blasters and their tripods. The intruder lights on the ship were flashing! I saw the lower turret spinning toward me, and ducked as another blast punched through the bulkhead where my head had been.

"Someone's activated the intruder system!" I shouted. Mission low crawled back to an intercom, and frantically began to patch in.

"There's no one aboard the _Ebon Hawk _but Sasha-"

As she spoke the intruder lights died. The gun returned to its neutral position, and the ramp came down. Sasha ran down it, waving for us frantically.

I leaped up, and charged across. She hugged me, then looked at the others. "_Amma Mata_?" She asked.

"She will come." I said in Mando'a. She nodded, and ran aboard. I ran up to the cockpit, and keyed our com system "Danika! Bastila!"

"We're here." Danika answered.

"We're aboard the _Ebon Hawk_, ready to take off. When we do, you need to talk to Sasha about the mess she left."

I leaned back. "Now we wait."


	23. Revelation

Danika

We ran through the passageways, avoiding action when we could, killing those that did try to stop us. There was a ramp leading down and we charged down it. There was a hatch at the bottom of it, and we ran in. The transparisteel port to our right showed the Ebon Hawk and carnage around it. Was this what Canderous had meant?

We didn't stop. I could feel Malak as if I could touch him, and I wanted to be away.

We ran down another ramp, and as we reached the bottom, a hatch opened before us. Malak strode through it, then stopped facing us. Carth drew and fired, but as he did Malak's hand rose, and Carth was blown off his feet, his shots going wild.

"Darth Malak!" Bastila snarled.

"I hope you weren't leaving without saying goodbye, Bastila. Not after all the effort I put into capturing you and your companions. Besides, I had to see with my own eyes. To see if it was really true. I can hardly believe it." He turned toward me. "Why did the Jedi spare you? Is it vengeance you seek in this reunion?"

"Speak plainly if you can, Malak." I snarled.

His voice sounded amused. "What, you mean you don't know? After all this time and you still haven't figured it out. My opinion of you intelligence has taken a stiff jolt.

"I wonder how long you would have stayed blind to the truth? Surely some of what you were has resurfaced. Not even the combined power of the Jedi Council would block that, Revan."

As he said that, I felt my life swirling.

Denouement

Memories poured into me;

_ Suddenly I saw a wide courtyard. A dark figure in robes stood there. I could recognize Lord Revan. She flung up her hands as if claiming it all, and spun, laughing with joy. She flung back her hood, catching the mask she wore. My own face looked around with glee._

Then memories from my life, or what I remembered of my life in the past weeks.

_ The Jedi do not believe in execution. No one deserves to die for their crimes. _

Bastila speaking of Revan. What did you do to me?

_ Traditionally the Jedi do not accept adults for training, this much is true. There however have been exceptions in the history of our order. In each it has come down to one such as her. A special case._

Master Dorak, who else would know such had happened before?

_ They say the Force can do terrible things to a mind. It can wipe away your memories and destroy your very identity._

Carth, a man looking from the outside. Had they done this to me?

_ I fear the quest to find the Star Forge will lead you down an all too familiar path._

Master Vrook. Suddenly I understood his rage when I had returned, for he had been my Master when I was Revan. How would anyone feel, when they failed so horribly with a student? Then to see that student return, excel again under another master, and be sent to stop... Herself?

_ Before Revan's fall she would have seen it as poetic justice. After all, what greater weapon is there than to turn you enemy to your cause? To use their own knowledge against them?_

So true, Bastila, What greater weapon?

_ Bastila laughing hysterically as she pushed me away. All I had said was trust me._

Of course. Trust me, of all people?

_ But it is so hard, to have your entire past wiped away by a callous hand._

Juhani when we spoke of Taris. Oh my dear friend, now I know what you felt!

_ You're dead!_

Tolan on Manaan. I was dead. Yet somehow I still lived.

_ You however have become an obsession for me, did you know that? I wasn't sure who you had been when I saw you. Your friend Ulgo was good enough for that. But I knew of you before my master Darth Malak did. Before Admiral Karath told him. _

Bandon on Manaan. The only one in this entire farce that had been honest with me. Yet never told me who I was.

Then another vision.

_The battle was not going well. That woman Bastila was using her battle meditation, __making the Republic ships more efficient. I wanted to talk to her, to explain. Why didn't they understand? I wasn't coming to destroy the Republic. Once they understood, they would see that the ships I had found, the Star Forge, would make us invincible! The Republic could settle into peace forever!_

_ The hatch behind me opened, and Jedi poured onto the deck. At their head was a striking young woman, eliminating my Dark Jedi guard with ease._

_ "You cannot win, Revan." The woman said. I pitied her. She would try to kill me, and if she succeeded the Republic would be torn by war after war because these people wouldn't allow me to keep it safe. I drew my lightsaber, and advanced on her. There were only five of them. I would take them with ease, trying to not kill them._

_ Suddenly the ship rocked. Something struck me, a line surge from the systems behind me, ripping through my body. I screamed, falling. The last thing I remember was Bastila looking down on me as I fell into darkness._

Danika

I knew that all I had seen had taken only a moment, because Malak was still gloating. "You couldn't hide forever from what you were, what you are, Revan! Recognize what you were, the Dark Lord, master of the Sith! Then admit that I have taken your place!"

"I...I was Revan." I said in a whisper. "How is that possible?"

"You still don't understand, do you? The Jedi set a trap for us. They lured us into the battle of Zanebra, knowing that you would lead it, and where else would you favorite hound be but at your side?" His voice held something. Pain? "During the battle, a team of Jedi boarded your ship.

"They captured you, and the Jedi Council used the Force to reprogram your mind like a malfunctioning droid. They wiped your memories away, and turned you against your own followers."

"Why didn't they just kill me?" I asked.

"Because the Jedi are sanctimonious fools. They believe in rehabilitation and redemption, not retribution and execution. If you had died fighting them, all well and good. But since you were alive, they had to find some use for you." He waved toward me languidly.

"But if the Dark Lord of the Sith is supposed to be so powerful, how did they capture Revan... Capture me?"

"I helped them." Malak answered as if I were a fool. "I always knew the title of Dark Master would be mine. They gave me my chance earlier than I had anticipated. I order my ship to fire upon _Behemoth_, concentrating on the bridge. I had hoped to destroy all of my competent enemies at the same time. You and Bastila. Without her the Republic had no chance to stand against me. Without you, I would be the master."

"But why did you betray me?" My words were soft, a plea.

"You taught me well, Revan. Oh you spoke of saving the Republic, of giving them an order that would save them from future attacks, but that was all your own grand illusion. I however understood the way of the Sith you had recruited so much better. The strong must rule, and the weak must die.

"You must have known that I would challenge your title eventually. Maybe you thought I enjoyed being your favorite hound, but I was merely biding my time. The Jedi gave me my chance, and I took it!"

"Bastila?" Even as I asked, I knew it was true. Maybe I just hoped she would deny it.

"It's true. I was part of the team sent to capture... To capture you. When Malak fired on the ship we thought you were dead, but there was one spark of life remaining. Something I could use to anchor you to life-"

_ Her hand rose, and touched my cheek, a feather touch. I leaned into the hand. She leaned upward, and her lips brushed mine. Her eyes held a sadness I didn't understand._

_ Bond with me, she said._

"-I did most of the work rebuilding your mind. The Council merely assured that I did it correctly afterward."

"Why don't I remember being Revan?"

"They didn't want you back, Revan, don't you understand?" Malak snarled. "They wanted an obedient drone they could send out again. They don't want people that can think! They want obedience! They want slaves!"

"No." I looked at him. "They didn't anticipate that I would find a way to touch the Force again. They wanted a new start for someone that would never touch the Force. Thank you, Bastila. I forgive you."

"Forgiveness Revan? I was right to cast you aside. You are not worthy of the power of the Sith. Power I control! A part of me was always ashamed that I had to defeat you with turbolasers. There were those beneath me that thought it was because I was afraid of you. But not when I am done here. Fate has given me a chance to redeem myself from that. Once I defeat you here, no one will dare challenge my authority again!" He reached out, Bastila and Carth frozen in an instant of time.

"My triumph shall be complete! The Jedi council might have been foolish enough to let you live, but I am not making that mistake. We will finish this as custom demands. Master against apprentice for one last time!" His lightsaber lit.

"You can't defeat the light." I replied. My double saber lit.

"Spare me the platitudes!"

He struck at me savagely, and I felt a joy I hadn't felt in a long time. He was larger than I was, but he had never been my equal with a lightsaber! I cut, and he leaped backwards, unsettled for a moment that I was using a double blade. But he charged back in. I cut, and he roared, jumping back again. A narrow burn scar ran down his cheek. I had timed the _Fybylka_ cut perfectly, slicing his flesh but not the gorget he wore.

"It is said among the Echani that _Fybylka_ is the worse way to die. A single gentle cut at a time." I hissed.

He reached out, and I felt him pick me up and slam me into a bulkhead. He spun, running back through the blast door behind him. I leaped up. I suddenly felt my rage, my fury. At his betrayal of what I had been.

_ But I wasn't that person any more. _I set aside the emotions. Even as I did, I turned and ran port, through a series of hatches. Part of me remembered the layout of this ship as well as Carth had. I sprinted aft, then starboard. Opening the hatches that would lead forward again.

Malak was surprised. He saw me, and his saber re-ignited. I looked at him dispassionately. I would have to kill him, and part of me regretted that need. But he would die today. I moved forward smoothly, and struck, driving him back. He fought desperately, then reached out. I felt his hand close on my heart, and I staggered back, reaching in with the Force to pry his hand free. I dropped to my knees, gasping for air, and I felt his blade rise up-

"This ends here!" Bastila screamed. I saw a flash of light as her lightsaber sailed over my head to drive Malak back. I broke his hold, standing as she leaped past me. "For the Jedi!" She screamed. As she passed the hatch, I felt her reach out, slamming it and fusing the controls in the same instant. I staggered to my feet. It was a solid blast door. My lightsaber would expend all it's energy trying to cut through but I still leaped toward it.

Someone caught me from behind, lifting me off the ground. "No! The hatch is sealed! We can't get past it!" It was Carth. Why he even bothered stopping me was beyond my comprehension.

He spun me around, and an open palm slap exploded against my face. I stared at him, shocked.

"She said to find the Star Forge! Move it soldier!"

I found myself obeying. We ran aft, and the hatch opened into the hanger bay. I stumbled across the bodies and wreckage, following Carth. He leaped up the ramp, and I followed. "Get to your station!" He screamed. I was running on training alone.

The engines screamed as I climbed up into the turret. I saw a swirl of metal, fighter hanging on cradles above us. I blasted a couple of them as we spun to drive away from the ship. Then I spun the guns forward as fighters screamed in. Our main guns ravened, blowing a pair out of space as I engaged them. The fighters clover leafed to come back after us, one of the pilots extending his flight too far, and smashing into _Leviathan_. I killed until there were no more fighters coming. Canderous later told me there was a full squadron up, a dozen snub fighters. We killed them all.

Then _Leviathan _fired, but we were already out of range of anything but her big guns. Those made Carth maneuver like a madman, but after a few moments we were far enough out to jump to light speed.

I didn't want to leave the gunnery seat. Things were so much clearer up here, enemies marked by little discreet circles, as were friends. No one betrayed your trust, or expected too much of you. All you had to do was make sure an enemy hadn't slipped up on you.

But my enemy was with me every second, and I had not known.

"Re- Danika..." It was Carth. He had almost called me Revan. I had worked so hard to get him to trust me, all of it undone.

I shut down the console, and set the controls to safe. "I'll be right down."

_Ebon Hawk: _

Enroute to Korriban

Jolee

Things had gone wrong somehow aboard _Leviathan_. We had gotten free, the ship was in space, but something had gone horribly wrong.

"What happened, where's Bastila?" I asked.

"We ran into Darth Malak. Bastila sacrificed herself so we could get away." Carth replied. He was furious, and his eyes were on Danika.

"You mean she's... dead?" Mission asked.

"No. Malak won't kill her as long as he can try to turn her to the dark side. Her battle meditation would spell our doom. If he turns her to the dark side, the Sith can't lose!" I said.

"We can't help her without dying ourselves." Danika looked haunted. "The Star Forge must be our first priority."

"Second." Carth snapped. "There's a bigger issue we have to deal with. They deserve to know the truth." He took a pace toward her, and Danika seemed to shrink inward. "Are you going to tell them what Malak said? Or am I?"

She looked down, sitting with her hands in her lap. Then raised her head, eyes haunted. "I am, or I was, Darth Revan."

"Revan?" Mission squeaked. "Is this some kinda joke?"

"Yeah a great joke!" Carth snarled. "Perpetrated by Bastila and the Jedi Council! They captured Revan, erased her memory and sent that-" He hissed, pointing at Danika, "Thing out to fight for us! Saul Karath told me aboard Leviathan, and Bastila confirmed it!"

"You were Darth Revan?" Mission asked. She blew out a breath. "That's... big! Do you remember anything of when you were Revan?"

"Only a few bits." Danika answered softly. "Strange dreams, visions, not much else."

"So already the lies begin!" Carth growled.

"Back off Jet-jockey." Canderous said. "Give her a chance to explain."

"But if you don't remember what you were, how does that matter?" Mission pressed. "You are who you are now. That's all that really matters."

Carth threw his hands up. "Of course it matters, Mission! How do we know all of her memories won't come back? Do you want to wake up with the Dark Lord of the Sith in control again? The whole time we've been running around and we had Malak's master calling the tune!"

"I said back off." Canderous warned.

"Carth, I wish it wasn't true!" Danika wailed. "It isn't like I asked for this!"

"Hey, don't apologize to the Nerf-herder, Danika! You didn't ask to be Revan, and you sure didn't ask to be Danika either! Besides, I know who you are now." She walked over, kneeling beside Danika. "You're the one that risked your butt for Zaalbar and me. You're the one that found my brother, found Bastila's mother, stopped a war on Tatooine, gave the Wookiee their chance at freedom, gave the Selkath back their god! Whatever you were before, you're one of us now." She glared at Carth as if to dare him to challenge.

"Mission is right." Zaalbar growled. "You freed my people, and rescued my father. My life-debt is to the person you are, not to who you might have been."

"See? Big Z and I will stand by you! We owe you our lives. We can't betray you now!"

Carth was aghast. "How can you say that? The Sith bombed you home world into dust! Revan slaughtered my people, murdered my wife, stole my son! She ruined my life!"

"Again a mouth with an empty head." Canderous said. "One more word, Carth, and I'll tie you to a chair!" He walked forward. Only Zaalbar was larger, and none aboard were as lethal. "Where was she when the Sith bombed Taris? She was up in that turret saving our butts! When the Sith attacked Telos she was convincing Melodoro to surrender. It was Saul and Malak that killed your people. Even if she was in overall charge, you can't blame her for that!"

"I suppose you're right, Canderous. She's proven to be a friend to us, and the Republic. But Revan... How can we trust her knowing that?" Carth raged.

She looked around, and her eyes stopped on my face. "There's something you haven't told me, Jolee."

I sighed. "I knew who you were the instant I saw you on Kashyyyk. Not surprising, you were a student of mine when you were six or seven. Bastila told me what she had done, what the Council decided. It wasn't my place to second guess them. You had to know sooner or later, this just wasn't the best time. But it's done and we have to live with it. Does it change anything? Not that I can see. I'll trust you to know what to do."

She looked at me for a long time, then turned to look at Canderous. "What do you have to say, Canderous?"

"You were the only one that could have beaten us. We had never met anyone like you before. I thought I had actually found another like Revan until today. Someone worthy of the title she had held. But you don't have to ask where I stand. Revan became the Mand'alor, I am honor bound to serve the leader of my people.

"Whatever you fight, My Mand'alor, I will try to be worthy of your faith in our people." He knelt, eyes down. "Command me."

"Revan." Everyone turned to look at HK. "Neural overload. Must hear access command in ten seconds. Nine-"

"Knock it off, HK!" Danika sighed, holding her head.

"Accessing, memory reinitializing. Homing system shut down."

"Homing system?" She asked

"Greeting: Welcome back, Master." His head turned. "My deleted memory core has been restored as is proper when I have returned to my master."

"You mean, Revan was your master."

"Affirmative. Sith design protocols delete all information of a sensitive nature from a droid memory when it is sent on a mission, and it remains so until it has returned from that mission." The head turned to look at Mission. "Warning: A word, Mission Vao. When you asked if the thermal detonator was real, I lied when I said it was not. If you had accessed the memory core, it would have destroyed the building."

"Thanks for that!" Mission snapped sarcastically.

"Soft Soap: It was not a reflection on you, Mission Vao. My programming required it." The head turned. "Full functioning capability restored. It is good to see you again, master."

"You do understand that I am not Revan anymore." Danika said.

"Question reply: Identity of my master is set by physical and judgmental parameters for identity purposes. You match my master to seven percentile points."

"But you had to hear the access command-"

"Laughter: You thought it would be funny to use 'knock it off, HK' because no one else would dare to use the phrase to me."

"Wow!' Mission said. "What are the odds of that happening?"

"You're talking about the Force." Canderous said. "If Lord Malak appeared in midair and invited us to a tea party, I wouldn't even blink."

"Good point."

T3 rolled forward, and began bleeping. Only Mission looked at the screen. "Atta boy, T3! I knew you'd come around!"

"Juhani?" Danika's voice was soft.

"Now I know how you could feel so much pain at what I had lost. You have been through this too, though you only just realized it. We must destroy Malak, and you have been the one to lead us all this time."

Danika turned to look at Carth. "It's up to you, Carth. I had already told you to go to Dantooine, but that is no longer an option. If you can't trust me, we can head for Coruscant. Maybe there is someone that can undertake the mission with what we have. I will not stop you if that is what you decide. None of us will stop you."

"We can't waste the time!" Carth said. "The others are willing to trust you, and I can't see any other way to stop the Sith. I suppose Malak is the real enemy right now isn't he? I don't have a whole lot of choices."

"I am not Revan anymore, Carth." She said softly. "I don't know how to convince you."

"Damn it after all we've been through, I want to believe you. You have proven yourself time and again on this mission." He ran his fingers through his hair. "It's just a lot to have to digest in one sitting, you know?"

"How do you think I feel?" She asked.

"That's part of my problem. I know how I feel about this, but you were blindsided too. I don't know why you're not curled up in bed screaming. If you can keep on pushing, how can a mere mortal complain?" He gave a small smile, immediately gone again.

"I won't let my worries interfere with the mission, but remember I gave an oath to the Republic. As long as the mission continues on course, I'm your man. But at the first sign of deviation, I'm pulling the plug. I won't let you betray the Republic again. Even if I have to kill you."

She smiled sadly. "I asked you to be my conscience after Kashyyyk, didn't I? Keep watching me. I will die happy if you have to kill me. Better that than to become what I once was." She stood. "I am going to spend some time alone." She walked from the room. Sasha, who had been sitting in the corner quietly followed.

Danika

_ I am Revan. The dark lord. _

I wanted to wail to scream to smash everything in my quarters to splinters! Those who might listen to these records can't understand what I was going through. It was like I had gone to bed last night a woman, and woke up this morning a man!

I didn't know what to think, which didn't stop my mind from running in circles at light speed.

_ I am Revan. _

Except for Sasha and Jolee, they left me alone. Sasha crept in, and curled up against me. She offered me a halo fruit. I clutched her frantically, trying to return to the normality of just 24 hours ago. She didn't make a single sound of complaint. She only held my arms around her, crooning. How could she love someone so horrible, so violent? How could she expect a monster to protect her from other monsters?

_ I am Revan. _

About an hour later, Jolee walked in. He didn't say anything, didn't offer any encouragement. He merely set a holocron on the table by my bed, and left again. I waited until he had gone, then picked it up. Bastila appeared.

"I recorded this right after we left Manaan. If you are viewing this, you know who you really are, and I am not here for you to complain at. Perhaps I am dead. Considering the alternative, I would hope so. There are many questions you have right now, and I am not sure I have answered them all, but I have, I hope, answered the most pressing.

"Danika Wordweaver was a soldier, as you no doubt remember. She died of anoxia minutes before anyone could reach her, and I was able to transfer her memories into your mind. I was forced to do this by circumstance. You don't realize how stunned I was by being able to do it. Mind healing at this level is not a well-known skill among the Jedi, and to find I could do it under such hazardous circumstances was both exhilarating and terrifying. To discover that I could also transfer her memories into your mind was even more terrifying.

"She died to save us both. I could think of no greater memorial for her than to use her as a template to heal you. Her true service record is attached to this.

"As to why you don't remember your own past, the line surge that ripped through you erased a lot of your previous memories. There was also the worry about what would happen when you awoke. You see, no one had ever done what I did in living memory. We were sure that the Danika Wordweaver we revived would have no capability in the Force. She would live out her life unknowing. It was considered better to suppress what memories we did find to spare you the anguish of knowing that you were no longer what you once had been.

"Your file, or should I say, Revan's file is also attached. We don't know and cannot assume what memory you might retain, or regain with effort. Therefore all of what you had done before you fell to the dark is recorded.

"What surprised us most were what decisions you made when you became Danika. Changes that reflect not what you were in either life, but rather a synthesis of both. Revan was a powerful Guardian. You have become an equally powerful Consular instead. Your mannerisms, from what I have learned, are a mixture of the two women. You are now neither Revan Chadar Bai Echani nor Danika Wordweaver. You are a new person unique to the Galaxy as are we all." Her face grew sad.

"As for the Bond, I created it originally to keep the body of Revan alive. But it should not have grown and matured as it has. The Masters could see no reason for it's continuing existence. This has frightened me. There is still darkness within you that I can almost touch. I have tried to break the bond myself since Kashyyyk, but it sustains itself. Perhaps we together could have broken it, perhaps I was foolish to allow it to continue, but I had to think of the mission. I must admit, that at times, being bonded with you has given me insights I would never have had. I have seen things that I never imagined, and your memories of them are so sharp I feel they are alive for me as well.

"Well, if there are further questions, I am obviously not there to answer them. Ask Jolee. He can, I hope, give you more information. May the Force be with you."

I looked at the holocron, wishing there had been more. I closed my eyes, reaching along the bond we shared-

_Choking. Liquid covered her completely. Then suddenly she was in the air, breathing desperately. A face loomed over her. Malak._

_ "Welcome back to the real world, Bastila." She felt a collar lock around her neck, then around each arm and leg. "We have so much to talk about." Then the collar was activated-_

-I gasped. "Bastila..." I whispered.

_I'm Revan_

No, I am not Revan any more. I am Danika Wordweaver-

_ No, you're not. Danika was a stupid woman that died._

To save others!

_ True, but does that make her any more intelligent?_

She was true to her oath-

_ Big deal. She didn't have enough air to survive, and made a grand gesture. She could have railed against her fate. Instead she went to sleep._

What other choice did she have?

_ She had the Force as you do. Not as strong, mind, but she did. She could have pulled herself back to the ship and saved herself._

At the cost of our lives-

_ Which would be more important? Her life or yours?_

I was a waste of flesh. I wanted power-

_ No, you wanted security for the Republic forever. You gave yourself over to the dark side for security-_

The security of the _Sith_?

_ That was your way of reconciling the two aspects of the Force, or at least that is what you intended. But as Bastila said, once you give in even a little, you drive yourself deeper with every decision._

I have made my decision. I am Danika.

_ Of course that is your decision you fool! The Jedi Council programmed you like a faulty droid, making you acceptable-_

No!

I clutched my head, moaning. I expected my head to explode all over the compartment. I had to deal with this or I was sure to fail. I couldn't face the Sith, the people I had led into this war, without knowing whether I would simply fall again. I picked up the holocron, and concentrated on Danika's service record. She didn't look anything like me, of course. Tall, blonde chiseled face. She had served as I remembered, becoming a sergeant right before Zanebra. She wasn't considered likable but was very competent with the weapons she had learned. She was bluff and plainspoken, willing to hurt someone's feelings to prove her point but didn't gain pleasure by being right. A good sergeant. I concentrated on Revan instead.

Entered the Academy at age seven, exceeded everyone's expectations except for Jolee Bindo, who left the Academy when she turned eight. Jolee had warned that she tended to take the most direct course through any problem, and did not suffer fools gladly. She showed the same attitudes later. She was constantly pushing those around her to perform better, to perform perfectly if that was possible.

Became friends with Malak when she arrived. A friendship based on mutual interests in history and of all things, botany. Malak was four years older, and she had caught up, then surpassed him before her 14th birthday. He was a constant companion, and the masters had wondered if she would slip and either marry him or become the mother of his children. Neither was well looked upon by the masters. A countervailing interest would affect how she would think and feel.

Then when she turned 19 the Mandalorian war officially began. She constantly pushed that the Jedi must get involved, that waiting on the sidelines would doom the Order as well as the Republic. Finally the day she had turned 20, she had gathered those who agreed with her, and departed.

_I am Revan._

No, I was not Revan anymore. She had been a Guardian, what most people thought of when they heard the word Jedi. They were the knights of the order sans per sans reproach.

I had become a Consular, the smallest group of the order. We try to stop the conflicts, to mediate. The judges of the order. Striving not for victory, but for balance.

Did they adjust my mind so I would chose another path?

No. Master Dorak had assumed I would be a Guardian again. Why else did he have the blue crystals ready?

I was making my own path again. I was where Revan- where I was ten years ago, when I received my blue crystal.

That was it! concentrate on where Revan and the person I was now were different!

Revan had never liked the twin swords and Ritual brand, though she knew both styles and had practiced every day with single blade, twin blade and double bladed light sabers as all Echani did. Weapons are a part of their religion, meditative prayer done in the endless cycle of the dance of death. She had excelled with a standard lightsaber. I on the other hand had immediately been drawn to the blade I carried.

I paused, then checked the record of the real Danika's service record. She had never even used a double blade before her death. I however had been drawn to first the Echani ritual brand, then to this double lightsaber. I was taking a different path in every step.

The person I had been had never embraced the Echani view of war as a sport. I had considered it more logical than the deadly serious attention most people pay to it. War it seemed to me, was something that was constantly happening. The players changed, the venue changed, but I didn't remember a single year in the Republic's history where someone wasn't deeply embroiled in fighting someone else either within or without.

Both of us had hated bullies, but Revan had never had the deep abiding hatred I did for slavery. She felt that it was an evil that would die with time. I felt it had to be destroyed wherever I found it.

So it went for the next three days. I stayed in my cabin, wrestling with who I had been and who I had become. Sasha brought me meals, and would sit there watching me reproachfully until I ate. No one else bothered me. When I slept I dreamed. Some of Bastila, trapped within her body as she approached our doom. But some were true memories now, memories not of Danika's life, but Revan's.

_ A ship approaching a huge structure. It was as large as a moon. Three prongs thrust out into the darkness of space, the base pointing down at the pole of a star. It looked like god's own lightsaber. I could see the material of the star being sucked into that base. Such an orbit is impossible without massive gravity generators more powerful than any designed since. Below the prongs were launch bays, and as I watched, ships poured out as if they were dust blown away from a breathing giant. The largest was only the size of a frigate, but I knew that the massive exhalation I was witnessing was star stuff being formed into ships by a combination of the Force and alien technology._

_ My mind flew down through the massive hull, past deck after deck of machinery I still did not understand. I soared upward, and found myself on what could only be called the observation deck._

_ Revan stood there, watching as shuttles brought more crew from the fleet. As I stood there, I could share her thoughts. _

_ The conditions aboard those ships were close enough to normal for our crews to live, but long term exposure to the interiors caused some to have psychotic episodes. We had found it necessary to design an entire series of droids using the Star Forge that could 'man' and fight those ships. But they still needed a core crew of people to operate efficiently. Even with the droids we were running out of personnel._

_ Our worst problem was that because of the way they were built, they had to return here to be repaired. Only the Star Forge could reform the metal of their hulls. I remembered the wrecks on Tatooine, made as these had been made by those who had built the Star Forge. Without the Force, without this place, they would not last for long._

_ I saw Malak pass me, walking toward Revan._

_ "Yes Malak?" She asked without turning around._

_ "The newly formed fleet is manned and ready. They have been practicing maneuvers, and I deem them fit for combat. All they need is a commander assigned."_

_ "You are that commander, old friend." She turned, looking up at him. I could see the metal gorget, and knew that this was about a month after the battle of Trantor, where Malak had been grievously injured. He had been healed _

_as much as possible, the gorget replacing his jaw, and allowing him to speak._

_ "I do not want a fleet." He replied, looking at the floor. "I do not want to be separated from you, my master."_

_ "Malak." She walked over, and suddenly I was in her mind and body. Looking up at my old friend. He towered over me by at least 10 centimeters. But there are ways to measure strength that has nothing to do with physical build. "Most people would be thrilled to be named a fleet commander."_

_ He made a gesture toward the metal form around his neck. I saw what I had not then. He was embarrassed. "I am not yet well, my master." He said. "I do not feel comfortable dealing with those that see this."_

_ "I understand." I reached up, running my hand over his shaved head. Why had he started that? I wondered. "But you will get well?" I could hear a note of worry in her voice. "Whatever will I do if my good right arm falls away?"_

_ "You will fight on left handed, knowing you."_

_ I laughed, punching him in the shoulder. I might as well have assaulted a glacier with a cup of tepid tea. "Very well. Would you mind serving as a ship's commander beneath me?"_

_ "Have I ever complained?"_

_ "No, old friend, you have never complained. Very well. Take command of the second section of my own fleet. Which ship will you use as flag?"_

_ "_Leviathan_." He looked at the distant ships. "Admiral Karath still has twinges of conscience."_

_ "Very well."_

A great deal of that time I was planning what to do next. My biggest worry right this moment was that I would fall again, and cause the deaths of my friends-

_-The blade slicing through Mission, watching her fall, Zaalbar's scream of rage and pain and betrayal. _

I shook my head. Just a memory of that horrible vision. But it focused my mind. I worked not to save the ship, but to stop myself.

In the depths of this, like clockwork, there was a vision...

_The stone walls were merely old, not ancient like the Builder's structure. The walls were marked in what I knew were the runes used by the Sith race before they had been absorbed I paced down the hall, passing a lake of simmering acid, then through a massive door. Before me was a pintel, and beyond it, a statue of a kneeling man in Sith garb. There was something on the outstretched palm, and I touched the lightsaber. The blade flicked out, blood red-_

This next test would be harder than any other. I would be within a space so dark in the Force that it would be like diving into a mile of ocean. If nothing else came of this part of our mission, the ship had to survive.

Even if it meant they had to kill me.

I dressed, and Sasha watched me with hopeful eyes. I tousled her head, then stepped into the mess hall. Mission squeaked, then was setting a cup down in front of me, followed by as plate with pancakes and eggs.

"Thank you, Mission."

"You're welcome..." She paused. "Have you decided who you are yet?"

I looked up at her. "Revan is dead. I am Danika now and forever. When I have finished my meal, ask everyone to come here for a briefing before we land on Korriban."

Korriban

Carth

I was ready for anything, I thought. When Mission came to tell me that Revan- that Danika had asked us all to report, I put on the autopilot and headed aft. We had less than an hour before we dropped out of hyperspace.

Danika was sitting at the table as if the last few days had never happened. She smiled slightly at my approach, nodding toward a seat across the table from her. The others gathered, taking their seats.

"I have been considering the problem we didn't start this mission with." Danika began. "The problem that somewhere in here," she tapped her head, "Revan may be waiting to leap out and destroy us all. The problem is compounded by the fact that last night, I dreamed and saw the location of the Star Map here.

"It is located in one of the tombs in the valley of the Dark Lords beyond the Sith Academy."

Both Jolee and Juhani gasped at that. I didn't fully understand. However she had anticipated the questions.

"There is no place on this planet more deeply steeped in the Dark side than that valley. The Dark Lords of legend are buried there. Ajunta Pall, Marko Ragnos, Tulak Hord, Naga Sadow. Thousands of years of Sith history in one place.

"Also, I must pass through the Sith Academy to reach it. Only two sorts of people are allowed in the Academy. Sith, their students, and their slaves."

"I'm going." I rasped. Dustil was in there somewhere.

"As far as the Academy itself, you will. However, I must enter the valley alone." She held up her hand to forestall debate. "Please listen to what I have to say first. We must protect the ship, and one of those we need to protect it against is me." She stared at her hands, clenched so tightly that they were dark with blood. "I don't know that I will fail, or fall to the dark. But I must assume that it is a possibility. If that happens this ship and crew must survive. They must go to Coruscant, and warn the Jedi council.

"Therefore, I am giving these as my final orders. Until I have returned and been judged safe by you, no one will obey any order I give them from the moment we land. If they do, you must all assume that I have dominated their minds. Canderous, you HK and T3 have a duty I cannot assign to another. You, like they will obey my orders to the letter regardless of your feelings on the matter.

"Once I have stepped off the ship, and gone into Dreshdae, when I am too far away to stop you, I want you to design and activate a defensive system that cannot be penetrated or deactivated from outside the ship. Speak with Juhani and Jolee. I want something that will kill an attacker no matter how fast they move. Rig the ramp so that if anyone reaches it while the system is activated, the ship will be blown up. As much as I want the ship to escape, I don't want it to leave if- if I get back aboard without being cleared first.

"Use all your skills in ambush and booby traps. Use all of HK's skills, use all of T3s skills. There must be no way I can get back aboard without you allowing me back aboard.

"Juhani." I turned to her. "You and Jolee can resist me, and you must go ashore with me to set up my entry into the Academy together. I know if I turned evil, I could control one of you, but doubt I could do so without the other noticing. You both can reach into another's mind, and once I have gone into the Academy, you must use that skill. Work out with Canderous what he intends to do, then reach into each other's minds and remove it before we go ashore. That way I cannot get it from you.

"Once his system is set up, you must then remove it from Canderous' mind. I don't want to be able to read any of you if it is at all possible. If at any time you feel that I am attempting to take control of any of you, I want that system to automatically kill me. When you are all done, I must have a system that I can pass if you allow me to, but that will kill me if I try to slip by it in any way.

"HK, I am giving you an order that only someone else can countermand. In the event that it is assumed that I am a threat, you must kill me, or failing that, destroy this vessel if I succeed in getting aboard. I. Must. Not. Survive. Is that clear?"

"Yes, Master."

"Carth." She turned to me. "If I try to use others to get aboard and capture it, I want you to lift off. Get this ship away, even if you have to leave everyone else behind. I asked you to be my conscience after Kashyyyk. Now I ask you to be my executioner. If at any time you think that I have become a danger, if you even feel I might be falling back into the dark side, you must notify the crew so they can kill me." She stood, looking around our crew.

"I have been told that Revan was a tactical genius, If she comes back, I want to give her an insoluble problem. Work among yourselves, and make it harder than I have already laid it out. I will stay in my quarters until we land."

She turned, and walked from the compartment.


	24. Korriban: Slaver

Danika

I had just settled down in a chair when Juhani entered. She sat facing me, hesitant. "The Jedi that saved me on Taris... It was you, though you always went hooded so none of us saw your face. I heard you called by name back then, heard much later that you were leading the army to defeat the Mandalorians." She gave me a small smile. "It was your hand upon my head, that sent me to the Jedi."

"Yes." I said softly. "Not that I remember it."

"I knew in my heart that there was something wrong when I heard that you had become the Dark Lord. The woman that saved me could never have done that. Never fallen so far."

"I don't know, Juhani." I whispered. "The memories I do have of that time are fragmentary. I know however what caused my fall. I wanted to make sure the Republic would never be attacked again. I sought a weapon so powerful that every enemy would think twice, even if we never used it. I needed the help of the Sith to gain it, so I took them into my service. But..." I sighed, resting my face in my hands. "I didn't understand what would happen at all. The Star Forge is so imbued with the dark side that no one could ever use it for good. The dark side built it, and those that used it became tainted as I did. There is an old saying 'the road to the hells is paved with good intentions'. My intent was good, and see what I have wrought."

"But even now you give me hope!" I looked at her askance but she was serious. "To have fallen so far, yet dragged yourself from the pit. It makes my fall look so foolish in comparison. Your strength of will outshines everything else. I do not think I will fall to the dark side again. I have your example to follow and that is a tough challenge for a Cathar woman."

"But my fall shows that overconfidence is just as dangerous."

"That is true. I suppose no one would know better than you. But I will never forget what you did for me even if you don't remember it."

"Taris."

"Yes."

"Tell me of Taris, Juhani. I need to know that I did _something_ right. That is if it isn't too painful." I begged gently.

She sat across from me. "I am sorry for lashing out at you before. You were right, there was nothing you could have done to change what happened.

"My family were refugees as I told you before. There was fighting in the Rim areas before the Republic fought the Mandalorians. Canderous spoke of what they did to try to incite a reaction from the Republic."

"Your home world is there."

"Yes. Cathar is there. We were a proud warrior race. That appealed to the Mandalorian sense of honor. Defeating us would make their valor stronger. They sought to test themselves against people they believed were like them. But the first attempts ended in failure.

"One of the fallen ones as Canderous would have called them led the next attack. He sent in a lone ship disguised as a merchant vessel. When it was in orbit, they destroyed our long-range communications array, and jammed our local communications. As it did, a fleet poured out of hyperspace. They blasted our cities from orbit as we slept.

"We tried to fight back, but the Mandalorians of that fleet refused to face us as others had. They bombed us from orbit, shattering any defenses, killing even those that tried to run. We staved them off for a time, but the end was obvious."

"Didn't the Republic help?" I asked, shocked.

"Oh, you don't remember. Cathar was not a member of the Republic. This is almost 15 years ago that I speak of. When I was but a child of perhaps three. We had fought alongside the Republic and Mandalorians when they fought Exar Kun. We knew that if these Mandalorians knew so little of honor, we were doomed. The government put as many people aboard our ships as they could, and protected them with the lives of our fleet until they were safely away. That was the last my parents saw of our home. Most of those that they protected did not survive.

"We traveled, looking for a new world to call home, but those on the ship lost hope, and scattered to the winds. My parents arrived on Taris too poor to continue their flight. I don't know if it was the lack of money, or merely the lack of will, but they would go no farther. But Taris was a horrible place, dominated by humans intolerant of other species. It made a hard life unbearably harder."

"What happened to your parents?"

"My father lost his will to live. He turned to stimulants, and began frequenting the Cantinas. He would fight in the dueling ring for money, and every time he won, he felt again that warrior heritage that was his. But the stims took their toll. He became foolish. He began to take them before he fought, even though it would make him vulnerable. But stims will give you the feeling of being strong, brave, invincible, of belonging again.

"What I had heard was that a mercenary that had fought for the Mandalorians goaded him into a fight, impugning the honor of our entire race. But when my father challenged him, the mercenary shot him from behind rather than face him." She looked at me, crying.

"My mother tried to support me. But she was only one non-human woman in a crowd of those that hated us. She started to waste away. At the time, I thought she was just sick, but I know now that she had been feeding me enough so that I would grow strong, and shorting her own food in the process. But even that would not have been enough for long.

"She began doing small jobs for the Exchange. You know what kind of people they are. They enjoyed paying her a pittance, and knowing that if she was caught, she would end up in the Undercity instead of them. When money grew short, she had to borrow from them." I nodded. The idea that anyone could be used so made me glad Davik was dead.

"Then one day she collapsed in the Cantina she worked in. She was too weak to even feed herself. That is when I found that she had starved herself to feed me. We had no money then for medicines, or doctors. She just... died one day. I did not even have enough to bury her. Her body was thrown into the trash.

"A man came from the Exchange. Her loans had come due, and they wanted their money. I had none, and the man left after some vague threats. But then..." Her claws raked the air. "Then a group of them ambushed me, captured me. Told me that since I could not pay one way I would pay another. They would sell me.

"I cannot do justice to the horror of their slave pits. Treated like cattle, fed slops and bathed using a hose. There were twenty of us in a room so small that you could not risk laying down during the day for fear of being trampled. I was young, small, and terrified. Other slaves would try to steal my food so they could live unless I fought them.

"But before a ship could take us to market, the Jedi came. I do not know how they discovered our existence, but a team of Jedi knights raided the building where we were kept. The leader of the Exchange on Taris at that time was arrested and sent off to the spice mines of Kessel. We were freed, and returned to the city. It was like a fantasy story when the hero comes over the horizon. I was left with the dream..."

"To become a Jedi."

"Yes. When you saved me, you touched the head of that little girl. 'So strong with the Force, little one'. you said. 'If we weren't going to yet another confrontation, I would take you with me now!'." She looked at Sasha in the corner. "I see myself in Sasha, and wish you had taken me then. Better to have died living the dream than live on Taris until my escape.

"The administrators you had appointed got me off the planet. Once I reached Dantooine, I came to the Academy. You had told them I would come, and they took me in. Now I stand before you."

Sasha moved over to me, then reached out, running her hand over the Cathar's furred hands. "You belong here now." Sasha said. "My Cat sister."

Juhani cuffed her lightly. "Yes. Did you speak with her about her mess?"

"What mess?" I asked.

"Remember all of the bodies and damage in the hanger bay of Leviathan?" She asked. She pointed to Sasha. "All done by her with a lightsaber and _Ebon Hawk's _intruder systems. "

"Sasha!"

"They hurt you." Sasha touched her chest. "I felt it here. No one hurts my _Amma Mata_."

"What did you do?"

"Used the light beam weapon to kill one. Tore up wires. Then used the information box to set the guns. No one comes aboard until I say yes."

"She did more damage than all of us put together." Juhani said.

I turned Sasha around. "Young lady, we need to talk."

Jolee

We came in under the _Ebon Hawk _transponder. Clearance was smooth, and the ship landed at landing bay 7. Dreshdae was a small town, barely 2000 people. Korriban was an inhospitable planet, with nothing to redeem it except for the archeological wealth of the ruins of the past Sith settlements. Juhani and I decided to accompany Danika until she was able to get into the Academy. No one else was really safe if she suddenly succumbed to the Dark Side.

A Twi-lek was waiting as we came down the ramp, and he walked over, bowing. "I have news for the Dark Lord of the Sith."

Danika stopped, looking at him coldly. "Who are you?"

"Please, no threats. Listen to me and all will be made clear. My name is Ziagrom. I am a purveyor of specialty items. Those items are rare and have extraordinary power or value."

"You are a smuggler. Working with the Exchange." Danika replied.

"Please." He waved a hand languidly. "We have worked with that now defunct organization-"

"Defunct?"

He laughed. "You have been too busy I see, to keep track of the news. When Davik Kang disappeared, a lot of money went with him. Some was owed to others and they naturally wanted it back. Unfortunately, There were scores of planets to search, and some of those wanting the money had enemies on them so they didn't come alone. Words, blaster bolts, and a few bombs have been 'exchanged'. In the last four weeks, the Exchange has collapsed into warring factions. I doubt they will recover any time soon.

"Traditionally we have worked with the owner of the _Ebon Hawk_, the organization she reported to notwithstanding. Most recently of course that was Davik Kang, though we worked with Ahita Othar before him and Forii Haxa before her. However, we were reluctant to approach you. You have no connection with any syndicate we can verify, and you are a Jedi to boot! Not the sort of person we would normally associate with."

"No doubt."

"Since the reports that Taris had been destroyed, and Davik Kang disappearing, my associates noticed that the _Ebon Hawk _has traveled to a number of planets. Some, such as Manaan and Kashyyyk, have prices on Davik's head, so we knew you had no connection with him. It is rumored that maybe you killed him?" He looked at us for a moment as if expecting us to 'fess up'. "No matter. When your ship was on Manaan, one of our operatives placed a tracking device on her. It tracked you as far as _Ebon Hawk _being captured by _Leviathan_. Seems someone activated your intruder system aboard her, and our sensor was destroyed.

"But we knew the Sith were interested in you long before that, so we delved into our contacts within the Sith themselves."

"Contacts?" Danika asked.

"Yes. The Sith appear to be a monolithic organization, but every organization is made up of people, isn't it? There are millions of soldiers in the Sith fleet. I don't think it would surprise you to discover a number of them accept our monetary assistance. Even high-ranking officers can fall to the lure of easy credits.

"Your brief sojourn aboard _Leviathan _created quite a stir in the Sith fleet. Of course Lord Malak tried to suppress your identity. There were several 'accidents' and a number of summary executions. But even destroying the security systems footage and executing every survivor that saw you did not shut down the information we were able to garner. We know who you are, Lord Revan, and that you will eliminate Malak at your first opportunity to regain your control of the Sith."

"You are wrong." Danika replied. "I have no interest in revenge, or in -regaining my position among the Sith."

"As you say." Ziagrom purred. "However, you will end up killing Malak eventually, and we wish to offer our services. We deal, as I said in a number of items. Weapons, armor, even that Jedi stuff we have retrieved from Yavin. All for your use."

"And you will give this to me out of altruism?"

"Of course not!" He looked offended. "We are merchants, after all. However we will gladly sell them at a reduced rate. This will, we hope, convince you of our sincerity. If you stop by the Cantina and ask for Mika Dorin, and give my name as reference, he will gladly let you have a look at the premium merchandise we have for sale."

"I will consider it."

"Then my work here is done. Good luck Revan, and remember those that helped you in your time of need. Ah, before I go, there is one piece of information I give as proof of my interest in your venture. Czerka has already notified their local agent that operations of Manaan and Kashyyyk were badly disrupted by you. I would avoid letting any of them behind your back. Good day."

"What do we do about Czerka?" I asked.

"Unless we declare war on the Corporation, nothing, Jolee." Danika replied. "We do not have time for diversions. After all, as much damage as we have done to the corporation, it is like a mosquito trying to drain a Bantha to death. Even the Republic can't really destroy a corporation. Only wound it. If they confront us, we will deal with it."

"That's my girl."

"I am not your girl, Jolee." She sighed.

We walked toward the customs agent. As we did, another Twi-lek entered. He bumped into Danika then He glared at Juhani, snarling. "What the hell is your kind doing here? Bad enough I have to put up with Sith and the other idiots, but they let a Cathar stink up the place?"

"I have as much right to be here as you, sir." Juhani growled back.

"Ignore him, Juhani."

"Better listen to your Jedi master, little cat. Your pathetic people and their entire planet were crushed by my kind, and I'll gladly kill another."

If she could have gone ashen, Juhani would have. "What do you know of my world?"

"I know enough about..." His head cocked. "You look familiar."

"How would you know-"

"Juhani, we don't have time for this-"

"Back off Jedi filth! This has nothing to do with you!" He looked at Juhani, trying to remember. "No, he's definitely dead, and she probably is too..."

"What are you talking about?"

"Still I think you would make an excellent addition to my menagerie. What's your asking price, Jedi?"

Danika's face was cold. "She is a free citizen."

"Ha! Everyone knows Cathar aren't really people. Oh they ape it pretty well, the males should be put down as soon as they're done breeding, but the females make excellent pets once they're broken in. I remember one Cathar I had to put down on Taris-"

Juhani stepped forward, her rage flaming. "What did you say?"

"You were on Taris-" Danika began.

"What did you do on Taris?" Juhani screamed.

"Put down one of your kind like the animal he was." The Twi-lek said smugly. "Going on about honor as if it meant anything. He turned his back on me, the fool. A few weeks later I saw his daughter on the Slavers circuit, little bitty thing-"

"It was you!" While her voice was calm, I could feel her rage like a layer of plasma beneath ice.

"Wait, that's where I remember you! You were that little Cathar cub I was going to buy! I even put in a bid for you and it had been accepted but those damn Jedi came and ruined everything."

"You tried to buy her?" Danika's fury was even better hidden than Juhani's.

"When I fought for the Mandalorians during the Exar Kun war, I developed a taste for her kind. They will do things a man can't believe once they're properly trained. You Jedi may be all prim and proper on the outside but you must feel the same way I do about the lesser species or you wouldn't have bought her. At least the Sith are honest about it."

Juhani's rage was growing again. "My father, my people..."

"Come on. Will you let your pet go? I'm sure we can come up with a reasonable price-"

"She is a free person, and is not for sale." Danika's words dropped like tombstones. "Now or ever."

"And I will see you dead for my father and my people!" Juhani screamed. Her saber lit, and she lunged at the man. Danika reached out, holding her back with a hand on her arm.

"Juhani. Don't fall to the dark side again." She whispered.

The Cathar stepped back, breathing hard, controlling her emotions. "I am a Jedi. I will not fall again for such as him." She replied.

I had been watching the Twi-lek. He slipped the palm pistol he had been reaching for into his hand, laughing. "Oh I'll have you yet, little cat." He laughed harshly, and went past us toward his own ship.

Danika

I watched the Twi-lek walk away, and damped down my own fury. That something like him would consider my friend a pet!

"Calm down, Danika." Jolee said.

I glared at him for a moment, then ducked my head in apology. "Sorry, Jolee. Slavery is one thing that has always bothered me."

"You can't stop it without making it painful." He said. "But if you stay off planets where it's illegal, you can get away with murder."

"I think that is part of what caused me to fall." I said. "The idea that slavery is legal here, but not there, even if illegal under the law. Just one more axe to grind with the Senate."

"It's the system we live with."

"I know." I led the way to the Customs officer. He was in a Sith uniform. Flanking the console was a Czerka employee who glared at us.

"Welcome to Dreshdae." The customs agent said. "Or should I say, welcome back? The _Ebon Hawk _has been here several times. Well met, Jedi."

"How did you know we were Jedi?"

"Only a Jedi or a pretentious fool carries a lightsaber. We have seen a lot of your kind in the last few years. Young hopefuls hoping to enter the Sith Academy. I understand that the Commandant of the Academy welcomes Jedi that come here. So much easier to train someone who already knows the Force."

"So I would imagine"

"Well enough of that. Since the ship is a regular to our colony, the docking fees are minimal-"

"If that's who I think it is, Czerka will have something to say about that." The Czerka man snarled. "Papers."

"You do not have authority, company man." The Customs agent snarled. "All administration of this facility including the cargo your ships deliver is by the Sith. Discuss it with them before you try to interfere." The Czerka man stormed away. "I would give you two warnings, Jedi. First, news of Manaan and Kashyyyk has reached here. The Czerkas are a little... upset about that. Second, students and prospective students of the Academy have free reign in the city. Unless you want pain, or don't mind killing, I would avoid them."

I nodded. Once we were in the hall leading to the colony itself, I stopped my compatriots. "Part of my memory is of my father. He was a prefect on Echana. You have seen the type, Jolee, have you not?"

"Yeah. Noses so high up in the air that you wonder why their necks don't break. Easy to irritate, hard to calm down."

"I think I must assume that character while in the city. It might make any dealings with Sith 'students' we have more peaceable."

"Okay by me."

"Juhani?"

"I am sorry, Danika." She whispered. "My blood boils at the thought of that creature still living. But I will not give into the dark side again. He will pay for his crimes in time, but I worry that he will follow us, follow me, until he can capture me. Perhaps if we find him again, we can end this now."

"We will deal with him before we leave the planet. I swear it." I answered.

At the foot of the hall, a young man in Sith Uniform was facing off against three young people. "That is the wrong answer again! You pathetic hopefuls can't believe that the Sith would ever accept you!"

"Please Master Shaardan! We'll do anything to get into the Academy!" Pleaded one young man.

Shaardan snorted. "I'm no master, though I like the sound of that. All right. One more question. But you lot are trying my patience. Say you are a Sith, and I am your commanding officer. I give you an order to spare the life of an enemy. What do you do?"

"We spare him!" The female, a Twi-lek replied. "You have ordered it and orders must be obeyed!"

"Yes!" Another prospective, a boy said. "We would never disobey an order!"

"Wrong!" Shaardan gloated. "Do you think the Sith would dream of adding such sniveling cowards to our ranks? Mercy is a weakness! If your leader is weak, he must be removed! It is your duty to be strong, and to eliminate the weak! That is why the Sith are strong."

"Yes!" The boy answered, terrified. "We understand now."

"No you don't understand. If you did, you would already be students! You have wasted too much of my time already! You all deserve punishment. Maybe I'll..." He tapped his lightsaber against his chin thoughtfully. Then he saw me.

"You! Jedi! You're here to get into the Academy, right? Of course you are. Let me pose a question to you. A lesson needs to be taught here, and I am at a loss to think of a suitable one."

"Well if you can't think of something cruel, you may not deserve the title of Sith if you ask me." Jolee said calmly.

"Was I talking to you, old man?" He snarled. He looked back at me. "I was just considering the options. Choking them with the Force or perhaps Force lightning..." At his words the prospective students wailed.

"Please, let us go! I beg you-"

Something inside me came out. I walked over to face Shaardan. "Let me put a question to you instead. A Jedi with more power in her little finger than you can imagine is standing here impatiently while a puling little piece of filth blocks her way." I reached out, and his lightsaber leaped into my hand. "Will she merely kill him? Or does she torment him as he does these children?" I lit the lightsaber. "Answer."

He swallowed convulsively. "She... She shows mercy-" He squeaked as I threw the lightsaber, and it struck the wall behind him, punching a neat hole.

"The same mercy you deny them?" I snarled. "Where are the strong without the weak to do the work that needs to be done? Will you grow your own food, weave your own clothes, build your own ships? That is what the weak do for the strong. It is the reason for their existence.

"My father used to say 'you can no more complain that a fool is a fool, than you can complain that the wind is just air'." I reached out, pulling the lightsaber back to me. "This time I think you have learned something. More than you might have taught them with your stupid questions." I flung the lightsaber at his feet. "Get out of my sight before I change my mind." He scrambled for the weapon, and ran. I looked at the students, now even more terrified because I had proven to be just as mad as their tormenter.

"You three. This is no place for you here if you care about anything beyond power like his ilk. Go home. If you still feel the need for the Force, go to the Jedi. You don't belong here." I walked past them. When they had gone I looked back at Jolee. He gave me a golf-clap in return.

Our troubles were only beginning. There was a trio of young Sith on the concourse. One of them, a young blonde woman saw us.

"Why look here! Fresh meat. Led by a Jedi of all things." She looked us over. "Haven't seen any of you here before."

"Can't stand those pathetic traitors." One of her compatriots growled. "We had to work to get into the Academy. They just sail on in as if it's their right!"

"As for being new, it probably explains why you haven't seen us." Jolee said.

"Smart mouthed ones too." She tapped the hilt of her lightsaber against her hand. "Well old man, the Sith do as we please. Quite literally whether you live of die depends on our whim. What do you think of that?"

"You can try to kill us." I replied coldly. "You will fail, but you can try."

"Brave words for a fool. Do you know how many Sith are on this planet?"

"Twelve, no wait, thirteen!' Jolee said.

"Let me kill that one, Lashowe!" One of the others shouted, facing off against Jolee. "Let me do it!"

"Now now, let's not be hasty. Death is so permanent, and I for one want some amusement." She looked at me. "What do you say, Jedi? Amuse us and we might let you live."

"I am not looking for trouble. But I am not here to amuse anyone. Get out of our way."

Lashowe's face purpled. "Why you-" Her tirade was broken when one of her companions chortled.

"Looks like this one isn't afraid of you Lashowe."

"Are you going to just stand there and let her insult us?" She screamed.

"Brave words from your kind." I snapped. "One last time. Get out of our way."

Lashowe looked at me with murder in her eyes. "Fine. I will deal with you later." She stormed off, followed by her friends.

I watched her storm away, and looked at Jolee. "Why does this not make me happy?" I asked him.

"Because you understand exactly how many problems this attitude would cause" Jolee replied.

"Yet I accepted it before." I replied leadenly.

"Because you didn't know any better." He snapped. "Did you think every dark side challenge of your life would be marked with warning signs?"

I sighed. "Why did you come along, Jolee?"

"Because you asked Juhani and I to-"

"No. Not why are you with us on Korriban. Why did you leave Kashyyyk with us?"

"When I saw your ship I just had to come along. I'd forgotten what ship's engines sound like. The only thing similar on Kashyyyk is when the Ullers are in mating season. But then you have to worry about getting stepped on-"

"So you left your home of almost twenty years just for a ride on my ship?"

"Maybe it was the Zabu meat. I've been eating my own cooking for so long, it was starting to taste good. Stewed Viper, Web-crawler bisque, katarn stew-"

"You have to bake katarn." I replied tartly.

"So you've been paying attention when I talk. Most women just pretend after an hour or so."

"Are you going to tell me or not?"

"At my age, the only fun you have with women is being enigmatic. So stop trying to spoil my fun. You know you remind me of someone I knew ages ago. Young brave, great destiny, but he had breath that would have stunned a Bantha-"

"You're avoiding the question."

"Of course I am. One of the perks of being my age. Try it when you get to be as old as I am. You have my permission. Anyway, where was I? Oh, yeah. Andor Vex. The Force swirled around him like a hurricane."

"Never heard of him."

"Wouldn't expect you had. His was a long time ago, and I was young."

"How young are we talking?"

"Well I had a full head of hair and Coruscant was a small town with a well."

"Ah, ancient history."

"Who you calling ancient? I'm well preserved! Now stop interrupting." He went on to spin an improbable story about Andor Vex dying when he had been thrown into an energy intake shaft aboard a ship, with Jolee the only survivor. It finally ended with, "Just remember, swirling Force may just be a bad case of gas."

"So what does this have to do with me?"

"Well sometimes people go down in a ball of fire, and I figured something like that is worth seeing twice."

"And I remind you of him?"

"At times. Other times you remind me of my wife."

"You were married?"

"Know any other way to get a wife?"

Jolee

Danika listened as I rambled on. I had learned the best way to judge what a person would do was by telling them stories. Are the stories I tell true? None of your business!

We reached the Cantina, and were going inside when a scruffy little Rodian stopped us. "Human, a moment of your time please. You are the one flying _Ebon Hawk _now?"

"Yes, I am. Who is asking?"

"A name is unimportant. You do not know me. I do not know you. Better in this business. What is important is that we have been waiting on a shipment to be carried by _Ebon Hawk _for a month now. We should probably be happy that the shipment made it off Taris, but still we are without. Please hand it over, and our business is done."

"What are you talking about?"

"You don't know? Didn't Davik tell you?"

"Davik is dead."

"Not from what I heard. The Exchange is killing itself trying to find him. Are you sure? How did you end up with the _Ebon Hawk _then?"

"He sold her to us."

"Ah, then fake his death. To be honest, the transfer of ownership is not important to us. We had contracted to have several kilos of spice delivered. Maybe it is aboard and you didn't know it?"

Danika looked at him. "Perhaps. But where-"

"_Ebon Hawk _has many small areas of concealment. His last message to us said it was aboard in the scan proof container we supplied."

"I can look for it."

"Please do. He leaned forward and whispered. "That is code to open the storage area. Davik gave us it."

Danika lifted her com, and spoke. Her com was set to hush mode, so no one nearby could hear what she said or heard. A moment later, she lowered her arm. "I have someone bringing it right now."

We stood there waiting. A few minutes later, Mission came down the ramp, carrying a small shipping container. She handed it to Danika. Danika gave it to the Rodian. The little guy took out a bankcard, handing it over. "You're payment for delivery. Tell me, Human, would you be interested in carrying something for us?"

"No more spice."

"Nothing of the sort. A rare antique box that must be delivered to Motta the Hutt. This spice came from him, and the box is his payment." He handed over a datapad, and Danika looked at it.

"Yes. I will accept the box." She handed the datapad to me. The box was a pintel 20 centimeters tall, and looked like the Star Map we had seen on Kashyyyk. I handed it to Juhani.

"Good. There is no danger involved as long as you don't open the box."

"Why?"

The Rodian looked around. "Bad stories about it. People who die, but don't die. Their minds gone, their bodies still alive, if you call that life."

"I'll take it."

"I will have it delivered aboard your ship. Motta lives in the town of Anchorhead on Tatooine. Our business is concluded then. Good day."

"Danika-" Juhani began.

"You saw the box. It is a builder artifact. I can't very well leave it in the hands of criminals."

"I agree. However what do you intend to do with it?"

"I haven't decided yet." Danika hissed. "Right now, I just want a drink."

Danika

The Cantina was quiet. We got our drinks, and sat down. The bartender watched us, and I remembered Ziagrom. I motioned, and he brought us a second round. "You are Mika Dorin aren't you?"

"Guilty." He said. "And you are the new owner of the _Ebon Hawk_."

"A man named Ziagrom suggested I talk with you."

"Yes. If you need special items. Traditionally the owner of the _Ebon Hawk _has been the contact for all of our transactions, but in the past the owners have always been affiliated with the Exchange. That is why Ziagrom waited until now to contact you. We had no idea who you were, or whether we could do business with you. However all doubts have been explained, Lord Revan."

"I am not Revan anymore."

"You are not? Then Ziagrom is wrong for once?"

"No. I was Revan. But not any more."

"Your disguise is not important. You have no intent to dispose of your wayward apprentice?"

"That I did not say. I will not be doing it for revenge, however."

"Your reasoning is not germane to our business transactions. We do believe in what you are capable of, and in our own small part, wish to help."

"What do you normally carry?"

"A weapon of all sizes from hand projectors to ship's cannon. However from what I have seen, the _Ebon Hawk _has been upgraded recently. The best I could give you for the ship would be missiles."

"How many and what type?"

"Seismic mines, concussion warheads, and ion blast torpedoes. The previous owners usually sold our merchandise but you I think will use it instead."

I called the ship, and told Canderous to come and discuss it with the man later. "Do you know a lot about the previous owners?"

"Nothing that you couldn't get out of the merchant registry. Most were affiliated with the Exchange as I have already said, and revealed only enough to establish their bona fides. But the ship itself is well known. She is said to be the best smuggler in ten sectors. Some say such renown explains the curse she is also supposed to bear."

"A curse?"

"Everyone agrees that the _Ebon Hawk _is the premier vessel when it comes to smuggling. However, her captains have not fared well. Take Davik Kang for instance. Can you say having your home planet blown apart beneath you was good luck? While the destruction of Taris might not have killed Davik, surely the fact that you are here and he is not suggests that you put something lethal in his path. Ahita Othar was hired to carry a poorly sealed vial of the Iridian plague virus for a military subsidiary of Czerka, and her entire crew died. Forii Haxa before her tried to cheat at Pazaak, and had his arms ripped off. Shall I go on?"

"That suggests that the captains have been foolish or worked in a dangerous field. Not that the ship is cursed."

"True. But I expect a Dark Lord of the Sith can cause more ill luck than good."

"What can you tell me about the Academy?"

"An odd question considering who you are. Very well, I will assume that you are pretending to not be Revan for a time. The Academy is beyond the flats outside. It can only be entered by students and teachers. All perspective candidates must receive a medallion, and show this upon entry."

"Where can I get one of these medallions?"

"Either from a teacher or from a student. I must admit though that it would be easier to simply kill a student and take it from his corpse. One of the teachers from there is Yuthura Ban. She frequents my establishment occasionally."

I slid a small stack of credits across. "For our drinks, and one other thing. Call me aboard my ship the next time this Yuthura Ban is here."

He scooped up the money, and walked away.

We started back toward the ship. Ahead of me I saw a group of men in Czerka uniforms, and among them-

"Down!" I dived for the deck, followed by Jolee. There was a burst of sound, and Juhani shuddered as a sonic rifle blast hit her.

"Stay where you are!" One of the men said. "Xor Vontori wishes the return of his escaped slave. If you interfere, we are authorized to use deadly force."

I leaped to my feet, and my lightsaber ripped across the intervening distance. The man with the sonic rifle had time for one scream as it sliced through his chest. Jolee reached out, and men tumbled like nine pins as I ran toward them.

The lightsaber flew back to my hand, and I blocked several blaster bolts, sending two men down from the ricochets. Behind me I could hear cursing, but I ignored it. There were four men and Xor remaining, and they screamed as I dropped among them. I cut left and right, then forward, three dead in as many seconds. The last Czerka man turned to run. I let him go as Xor came at me. He had the hideout pistol he had pulled before, and as it came up, I sliced into his arm, taking it off below the shoulder. His scream died in a gurgle as I rammed the blade through his chest.

I reached out, and plucked up the man that was running, flipping him through the air to slam into a wall. I caught him by the collar as he fell.

"How dare you interfere with my crew!" He gibbered in terror. I dropped him, the lightsaber dying. "Tell your company rep that if he interferes with me and mine again, I will probably get angry. If I do, Czerka will have to send replacements for everyone here. Now get out of my sight!"

As he scrabbled away, I turned. Jolee was kneeling beside Juhani. Juhani was still quivering from the sonic blast. I took out a med Pac, and injected her with a painkiller.

There was the sound of gentle clapping. A female Twi-lek in Sith uniform stood there near the door to the Cantina. "Well done, Jedi." She purred.

"Who are you?" I snapped.

"Temper temper, little Jedi. You aren't the first to come to Korriban to get away from that stultifying order and you won't be the last. I am Yuthura Ban, second only to Master Uthar of the Academy. I hear you have an interest in me?"

"Yes."

"I liked your demonstration of skill... Did you plan it? Or did the polite conversation just dry up?"

"Someone was trying to take one of my crew away as a slave." I touched Juhani's shoulder. She would be out of it for at least another hour. "No one touches my friends."

"Ah. That explains so much. There is something odd about you, something I cannot place in my mind. Obviously you are a Jedi. From what I have seen, a powerful one. Were you part of the order for long? Did they train you?"

"I have forgotten most of my training."

She cocked her head. "Strange. Your answer makes little sense, but I sense no duplicity in the remark. You have great power, and the Sith always welcome those with power. That power can be trained into an unbeatable force with my help. Does that interest you?"

"Yes it does."

"Ah, good. Just the answer I would have expected. I will take you to the Academy now if you wish."

"No." I motioned. "I must get my crewmember aboard the ship first."

"An hour then?"

"Yes."

"Good. I warn you however that my patience is not infinite. If you fail to show up on time, you will be left behind, and I will not make the offer again."

"I'll be there."

She nodded, and went into the Cantina. I lifted Juhani. Jolee stood, watching around us.

"We don't have a lot of time, Jolee. Come on."


	25. Korriban: Academy

Prisoner

Danika

The Czerka employee at the landing bay looked surprised when I came through carrying Juhani. He talked on his com, and I saw his face pale. I looked at him speculatively, then walked aboard the _Ebon Hawk_. I took Juhani to the medical bay, and left her with Jolee. I told Carth what had happened, and he said he'd get ready. At his suggestion, he added T3 to our party. If T3 was already done, then I wasn't worried.

Only then did I go to the cargo bay. The small pintel sat there, enigmatic, and drawing me closer. I remembered the admonition from the smuggler even as I reached out and touched the tip. There was a flash as it opened, and someone screamed my name as I fell into light.

I found myself standing on an open plain, all of it a stark white. Ahead of me rose a pintel such as I had touched but three meters tall. Beneath the arms of it stood a figure. I walked toward it.

When I was closer I recognized one of the aliens whose artifacts I had been chasing. He looked at me.

"Another visitor. No one for such a long time, then three one after another! Now let me see... I don't know the species. Of course, I didn't know the other ones either. Female, bilateral symmetry, eyes in the head instead of properly spaced. I would prefer my own species and sex But you will do."

"Do for what?" I asked.

"As a body, of course. I don't want to remain in this prison forever, oh no. I am a prisoner as are you, now, though I expect this was an accident for you. This is where my people put our criminals. Our minds are forced into these little cages, there to remain for the duration of our sentences. For really monstrous criminals, we put them here forever."

"How long have you been here?" I asked.

"Time has little meaning, and I was never good with numbers even when I was alive. Let us just say that if my people still exist, they have forgotten me."

"What did you do to deserve this?"

"I fought a war. Lead a rebellion actually. Millions of my people died because I thought myself powerful enough to rule. As you can see, I was wrong."

I shook my head. "You said three in a row. What did you mean?"

"Two others of entirely different species came before you. One was a giant hermaphroditic slug. The other was like you except it had a pair of tentacles on its head. Most strange. However I could not speak to them as I can with you.

"Eventually they grew angry, and ran away into the light." He waved toward the expanse beyond the pillars. "You could find them out there if you wanted. However I would suggest against it. The whiteness brings out everything you might have done wrong in your life, and gives it flesh. Only here are we safe from that. They are either mad or being torn apart by their own evil by now."

_ People who die, but don't die. Their minds gone, their bodies still alive, if you call that life. _The Rodian had said. I looked at the white expanse beyond, thinking of all I had done that was evil. I didn't want to face Lord Revan furious that I had taken over. I shuddered.

"Is there no way out?"

"Now that is an interesting question, oh yes indeed. If you were of my race, it would be simpler, we would just exchange places. You would be here alone, and I would have to figure out female plumbing, and what your species might eat. They used to have rooms filled with thousands of these prisons separated by the species of the criminal so this would not happen, because only one of us can stay here, and you cannot force your way out. I have been in here for so long that I had nothing better to than to ponder that very question. Thousands of years. How many I don't know. The point is that I have found a way to escape. Interesting that, wouldn't you say?"

"But. Your people have been extinct for over 20,000 years. I doubt your body is still alive out there."

"How clever of you to have figured that out so quickly. My body is, of course, long dead, and dust by now. But _your _body is not." I suddenly saw where this was going. He shook his head. "Before you get all excited and defensive, let me tell you what I have also discovered, because a few millennia ago, I tried. I cannot merely leap into your body and abscond with it without your permission. As long as you resist, I am trapped here. Conversely, you cannot merely leap back into your body without my permission. This leaves us at an impasse, wouldn't you say?"

"Yes. I assume you have a suggestion to settle this."

"Of course. I have had all these millennia to think of one. I propose a contest to settle this like civilized beings. If you wanted we could debate for a thousand years why I should not be released, but I don't think your body has a thousand years left. Frankly even after a thousand years, I don't think either of us will carry the debate in our favor.

"So why waste the time? One contest between us. The winner gets to leave."

"What sort of contest?"

"I have little clues as to what manner of contests are normal beyond my prison. I cannot guarantee knowing the rules, let alone the scoring of any game you might have played. We could fight, but neither of us can die in here, or even stay injured for long. All that would do is cause us both unnecessary pain. Therefore could we settle on a game of the mind? A riddle game perhaps? The first to fail in answering will be the loser?"

I considered. At the moment, my body was a drooling vegetable aboard the ship. I had to get to the Cantina quickly, or fail to enter the Academy. "Would it be a different case if the visitor was of your own species?"

He considered. "Of course. But since you have said that my race is extinct, there were none to trade with. However these boxes were made to keep only one of my kind. I could have walked out there a long time ago." He waved at the whiteness. "That would have emptied the box when I died."

"But the quest I am on is linked to something called the Star Forge."

That got his attention. "It still exists?"

"Apparently."

"Then the planet it serviced must also live." He was getting excited. "There is a chance that some of my people still live. If you can find my people..." He considered. "I agree to that proposal, but only because your body is not really attractive as a vessel. Do you promise to aid me?"

"I swear it."

"Are you ready to return to your body?"

"I am ready to go."

"One other species, a person whose race ritually scars themselves quite horribly found the way out I will describe. Just concentrate on breathing, then stop, and allow yourself to grow faint. Your body will draw you back."

I took a deep breath. "One thing."

"Yes?"

"Don't tell the next one how bad you are with numbers."

"Thank you."

I stopped breathing. My head began to spin, then suddenly I sat up, sucking air into my lungs.

"Danika!" Someone caught me by the shoulder. I was in my quarters.

"Carth." I answered. "So close."

"What?"

"That poor creature trapped in that prison everyone seems to think is just a box. I came so close to staying there in his place." I looked at him. "Picture a prison you can only escape if they _let_ you out or you are replaced. Then picture your entire society dying, and you're still in prison, now with no way to escape except by dying. I wanted to take his place, to give him a chance to live a full life. Regardless of what he might have done, no one deserves what happened to him."

I stood, and walked back to the cargo hold. I laid my hand on the box, and whispered. "If there is a way, you will be freed." I turned. "How long was I unconscious?"

"Only a few minutes."

Academy

Danika

We hurried. Yuthura noticed my companions, but made no mention of them. She led me across the plain to a huge door, and opened it. The Academy was an ancient structure converted to the use of the Sith. In a large central room, a small number of hopefuls were gathered. A man stood before them. I could feel the Force burning in him, but it was tinged almost to black.

"I am Uthar Wynn, the Master of this Academy. It appears that we have a late entry." He looked at me, as did the other hopefuls. "What have your found for me, Yuthura? A young human bristling with the force?"

"A young woman that has had some training among the Jedi, Master Uthar. A very promising prospect."

"Promising?" I looked at the speaker. Lashowe sneered. "I met her in the colony. Not much there that I can see."

"Do you doubt my senses, student?" Yuthura purred angrily.

"I will make my own judgments, thank you." Uthar said blandly. Both women flushed. He was watching me during the exchange, and smiled. "Tell me, young Jedi. What do you know of the Sith? What propaganda have you been fed about us?"

"I know that the Sith are a force to be reckoned with." I replied softly. "That they are powerful."

"A diplomatic answer. Wise for a student. As for power, our power is obvious even to the untrained. However my question goes deeper than that. Since you have had training that these others have not, I will explain for their benefit.

"The Jedi equate light with goodness, strength, and justice, and the darkness with subterfuge, evil, and weakness. That is their tradition, and it is no surprise that they cling to that outmoded view of the world for their comfort. They treat the Force as if it were a rare and precious burden, something to be carried about but used only sparingly. As if it were water in a desert.

"We however treat the Force as a gift given to the strong. Something that can never be used up, so why not use it? We celebrate our power. We glory in it. We use it to subjugate the weak because the strong always control the weak. There are those that say we should not, but they are the ones that trained her." He pointed at me. "Beings that can only see the world through glasses of their own prejudice.

"We are what the Force is meant to be. The Jedi will tell you otherwise. They say that the dark side is too quick too easy wrong because of the emotions it draws on. But they say this over and over to hide from their own natures. They cringe from glorying in their ability, and expect you to do the same.

"Joining us means realizing your true potential. It means not having your skills stultified by a group of hidebound shamans unwilling to step from their hide tents to see the glory of the sun! Accepting our ways means realizing what you were meant to be in this Galaxy. Hunters, killers, conquerors. Are you ready for that?" He looked at each of us in turn. "Are you ready to accept that power Lashowe? Do you dare?"

"I dare, Master Uthar!" She screamed. "I am ready!"

Uthar smiled. "Brash and fiery as reported. Turn all of that passion to your studies, and you will succeed. What of you Mekel? Are you ready?"

The young man bowed. "More than ready."

"I sense much anger in you. That is good. It will feed your power as you grow into it. What say you Shaardan?"

Shaardan had been glaring at me, and flinched. "I am always ready!"

"I see. Best gather your wits, boy, or you won't survive the trials ahead." He looked at me. "And you, young Jedi. Are you ready?"

"I am always ready to learn more."

"Are you?" His head cocked. "I can see into your heart girl. I see the dark kernel that is there. Whether it will sprout is yet to be seen." He turned back to the group. "You all stand here today, but I will tell you this. Only one of you four will go on to attain the glory of the Sith. There is a series of tests that you must pass, and only one shall succeed. That one will be accepted into the Academy, and the others will be cast out to wait for a year. As you have already, Shaardan, and you, Lashowe. Failure to pass may also mean your deaths, as those two can attest. My apprentice Yuthura shall be your teacher and master during these next days. Heed her words as mine. Take over."

Yuthura slipped her thumbs in her belt. "You have heard the master, and testing begins this minute. None of you are true Sith yet. For that to occur, one of you must impress both Master Uthar and me with their skill audacity and strength. If you feel worthy, there is a last test, which will decide. The tombs beyond-" she waved behind us. "House the relics of our forebears. Of them all, only one had been penetrated successfully. Since then we have used the tombs to cull out the fools who hurry without thought. You need not step foot in any of them until the final test, but if you penetrate a tomb, and bring out proof that you have done so, you will easily win this contest.

"For it is a contest. You are not a team. You are competitors. One will stand alone at the end, and the others shall be cast out, or dead. If having to fight just to survive is a problem for you, leave now. The choice is yours."

"Whomsoever wins must also be able to explain and quote the Sith Code and explain as well." Uthar said. "Being the first in that will gain you honor. The rest of your tests are for you to discover my children. Welcome to the dark side. Your one chance at glory, power, and true greatness begins here."

Suborning

Danika

We were led to our cubicles, then once the Sith hopefuls had unpacked their gear, we were taken for testing. This was easy for me, since it was on the level of the testing we had done aboard the _Ebon Hawk _with Sasha in the first days. What I learned in my first week on Dantooine. Moving items from place to place, lifting them and holding them suspended. I was first in this due to my training, but Mekel had some skill with it, as did Shaardan. Lashowe was the worst; unable to maintain her concentration, though when she hurled a chair into a wall hard enough to shatter it she was praised.

It didn't take long, and we were sent back to our cubicles to rest for the next day. Carth was impatient, and I understood why. All he wanted was Dustil, the Star Map, and to leave Korriban behind, the first two in whatever order they could be attained. T3 had been running diagnostics, and bleeped at me when I returned. I looked at my com.

Five attempts to slice my systems through the internal network have been recorded. None successful

"By?" I asked.

Lashowe, Shaardan, Yuthura, Uthar and Mekel in that order He bleeped. However two of them penetrated sufficiently that I was forced to 'pretend' to have been suborned. Those were by Shaardan and Uthar

"What did they seek?"

Shaardan has attempted to program me so that on command, I will assassinate you. Uthar was trying to discover your identity beyond what he had been told. He seems to feel that he would know you, and wants to discover why. Yuthura's probes were in the same vein. Note. Uthar has been in charge of the Academy for two years, but has been here for ten meaning he would have seen you as Revan. Yuthura was also here but only for six years, long enough to have met Revan

"Then I will have to dance between the raindrops." I said. I looked at Carth. "I will try to locate Dustil. T3, can you access the mainframe?"

Already done. Mission used the ICE program she gained on the Leviathan to create a super slicer program for my use. Location of Dustil Onasi is known. Also, there is a file attached to his concerning a woman named Selene. She arrived at the same time as Dustil Onasi but died two weeks ago. The file is... incomplete

"What do you mean?" Carth asked.

The file has all the earmarks of a sanitized copy

"I see what you mean." I said. "Like my service records aboard Endar Spire."

Exactly

"Would there be copies of the files somewhere else?"

Possible. Both Yuthura and Uthar have separate systems not linked to the mainframe

"Then let's see if I can get you to one of those systems." I stood. The door slid open, and I paused as Yuthura entered.

"Ah, my favorite prospect." She said. I stayed silent. "By my estimation you are head and shoulders above the others in ability. It is more than likely that you will attain the summit ahead of them without any help from me. As a matter of fact, I am so sure of this that I am going to offer you a once in a lifetime chance. Are you willing to hear it?"

"Yes."

"Ah, someone who decides quickly and is willing to take chances. I like that in my students. As I intimated, I am going to help you succeed over the others. Uthar will choose you, and I will of course, agree with his estimation.

"Once that is done, he will take you into the valley of the Dark Lords to the tomb of Naga Sadow for the final test. There you and I will be alone with him."

"Such a splendid time to rearrange a change of command?" I asked.

"Quick to decide, and quick to apprehend as well. Excellent."

"Why is this tomb so important?" I asked.

"Almost four years ago, Darth Revan and Darth Malak came. Of course they were still Jedi, but that would change soon enough. They brushed aside what defense we had, and entered the tomb of Naga Sadow together. Then they came out and departed returning five months later with an offer of alliance between them and the Sith. During that year, brave students penetrated the tomb and discovered a Star Map. The Master at that time resealed the tomb, and we have used it since. Reaching the map, against the same risks they faced, is now our final test for applicants.

"However that test is not as important to you as is the fact that Uthar, you, and myself will be completely alone. No guards, no other students, just us."

"And what is your part?"

"My part as you would say is to assure that you are the one that stands there with me. That means I must deter the others as long as possible. With that done, you go on to the final test. Once it has been completed, you and I face Uthar. Once he is dealt with, I become the Master of the Academy, and you are at my side as my apprentice. A simple, elegant, and most important, foolproof plan."

I considered. Whether she held the others back or not was unimportant. In fact I assumed she had made the offer to them as well. It was after all, the Sith way to eliminate your superior at the first opportunity. "Very well, I agree."

"I am so glad you see it my way. I must begin the preparations for the final test. Your only worry is getting there. Don't disappoint me."

"I would like something to assure you are really helping me." I said.

"You doubt my word?" She hissed.

"You are Sith. Lying to someone else for gain is pretty much a foregone conclusion."

She stared at me, then laughed. "Oh very good! What would you have of me?"

"The Code of the Sith."

"Ah. You were listening when Uthar spoke. I can explain it better than the library can. Would you hear it?"

"Please."

"Peace is a lie, there is only passion. Through passion I gain strength. Through strength I gain power. Through power I gain victory. Through victory my chains are broken. The Force shall free me." She looked at me, her eyes glowing. "Simple words yet easily misunderstood because of that very simplicity. Would you care for me to explain further?"

"Peace is a lie, there is only passion?"

"The Jedi Masters would have you believe that peace is the most desirable goal. That peace of your own spirit is the way that the Force is best mastered. That the lack of conflict betters mankind. We of the Sith know different. It is our passion, our hate and our desire that fuels the Force within us. Conflict is nature's way to assure that the species, even down to the lowest virus improve themselves. Conflict between species assures that only the best survive. Conflict between societies forces them to grow and mature. Whether you call it evolution, or war, the only way to improve and adapt is to struggle. Or die. Without it all you have is stagnation."

"Through passion I gain strength?"

"What else fuels your power with the Force but your own passions? Anger, hatred, fear. All of these passions draw the force to them, and empowers us."

"What about love?'

She made a dismissing gesture. "Oh love would be good if it could be mastered, as can the others. Love can fuel anger and hatred, even fear when you believe it is not returned, or you have jealousy to add to the mixture. But love also leads to mercy and concentrating on one goal alone, feeding that love. That is, however, a lesson for another time."

"The Jedi say the opposite, though they also try to stop direct personal love. How can both be wrong?"

"The Force gives all beings power if they can learn to use it. Our passions give us the strength the Jedi lack."

"Through negative emotions?"

"Negative compared to what? What keeps even the smallest animal alive? The fear that makes it run and hide. If they cannot run, the anger needed to make it fight as hard as it can. The lust that makes them reproduce. That is what keeps animals alive. How can survival be negative?" I nodded slowly. "Our goal is to be stronger; to achieve our potential, then extend our potential as far as it may go. We are the predators of the universe, not the sheep or their shepherds.

"Through strength I gain power?"

"The stronger you become in the Force, the more temporal power you achieve. The Masters and Apprentices of the Sith order are above your strength because they have achieved it. Just as the Masters of the Jedi have attained more power. But where they gain it in a haphazard manner, by pure chance or a willing teacher, we fight for every step of the way, and seek those other powers. Without strife, your victories have no meaning. Without strife, you will not advance. Without strife, there is only stagnation."

"Through power I gain victory?"

"How many forms of victory would they have you believe there are? Peaceful victories where you convince your enemy not to attack. Victory by example, where you inspire a later generation. Truce, where you merely convince an enemy to stop fighting. Achievement, such as advancing from Apprentice to Padawan.

"But unless demonstrating your power and defeating all obstacles attains that victory, it is illusory. It is temporary because one day your enemy will see a new weakness, and begin the conflict again. If there is anything we learned from Darth Revan's defeat of the Manda'lor, it is that mercy has no part in victory. We seek to end all conflict between societies by showing ourselves superior to all around us, nothing less. As for personal conflicts," She made the same dismissing gesture. "We expect and glory in that."

"Through victory my chains are broken?"

"This has been argued over for a long time. Since the Code was developed by Ajunta Pall. The Chains represent the restrictions placed upon us, by those around us, by the physical restrictions of our species, and especially those we place upon ourselves. The ultimate goal of all Sith is to transcend any restrictions so we may do and be what we wish, though there is much more than that. One who has escaped from all restriction has achieved perfection. Their potential in all things fulfilled. Perfect strength, perfect power, perfect destiny. Imagine it if you can!

"That is our ideal at any rate. It is said in the legends of the Original Sith race that the Sith-ari, what they named the 'perfect being', will one day reveal itself and lead us from that day forward. But that is only legend."

"You don't believe the Sith-ari can exist?"

"I wondered as a young Sith what such a being might be like. The legends also say that the Sith-ari will first destroy us, then make us stronger than ever. I have come to believe that the Sith-ari are more an unattainable goal to lead us toward that perfection. The Jedi would argue with me on that, I think."

"The Force shall free me?"

"The Force is both our servant and our master, our teacher and our companion, our weapon and our tool. Know it, and you know the universe. Master it, and you master the universe. Strive for perfection, and the Force will reward you with perfection."

I understood. Actually, the problem was that the Sith Code was as rational as that of the Jedi. Both aimed at perfection of the being, but at cross purposes with each other. "I understand."

"I knew you would. The Force is strong in you, youngster. Master it and it will serve you well."

I nodded. "May I ask more?"

"There is not a lot of time for you to waste on idle questions." She admonished.

"I wonder about the ruins. Why have the Sith returned to them?"

"We seek knowledge of our progenitors on Korriban. Why they came here of all places, why they left. Perhaps we could learn more of the Force itself. With knowledge, you also gain power. However only one of the tombs has been breached and explored successfully up until now. The tomb of Naga Sadow. After Revan and Malak, only the Master of the Academy has been able to open the doors again. I am looking forward to your test. The way to enter the tomb is key to being the Master here."

I looked at that face. While she was enthusiastic about becoming the Master of the Academy, I felt that there was something beneath that desire. Something personal. "Tell me about yourself."

"What?" She looked surprised. "I am originally from Sleheryon, if you must know. I was a slave to Omeesh the Hutt. A vile and cruel representative of a cruel and vile race. More than that you have no need to know. Now go and gain your prestige." She shooed me off.

Carth

"Why did you ask that?" I hissed when we left the room.

"Because I can see that there is still good in her, Carth." She replied. "If I could be redeemed, so could she."

"I don't waste my time thinking about why an enemy is my enemy."

"Then you will always have enemies." She said. "Saul had a reason at least in his own mind for his betrayal. If that had been dealt with honestly, he would have been a loyal officer of the Republic still." She looked at me. "Or do you think that fools who feel patronage is more important than results should command men's lives?"

"That isn't what I meant!" I snapped. Then sighed. "Sometimes, you're just right, okay?"

"By discovering why an enemy is your enemy, you can bring them down to the level where if they would make an effort, you can end a conflict." She pressed. "And if you cannot end it, at least you gain no pleasure in killing them. Best to end their lives with at least some regret."

"Wait." Danika looked down at T3. "T3, we need that file on Selene now."

The little droid bleeped. Then rolled away. Danika leaned against the wall. "As time passes, more of what Revan was surfaces. Not in total recall, but in snippets. Full of doubts about her place in life, in her society. Finding the Force for her was like thinking yourself blind, then opening your eyes for the very first time. A lot of the doubts disappeared for her that day in her sixth year."

"What about Danika?" I asked.

"Danika has always been true what they made of her in my mind. A soldier willing to die for the Republic. Finding the Force within me has merely honed that intent." She looked at me levelly. "I worry more about other things."

"Such as?"

"The problem with the Sith Code is that it is as rational as that of the Jedi. Both aimed at perfection of the being. However they use it not to perfect just that being. They ignore the fact that without those we protect, the weak, a strong man is merely a starving naked bully. Even the Mandalorians understand that concept. The Sith believe that they must force the Galaxy into that same mold; make everyone everywhere conform to their view of perfection.

"You know as well as I that one thing people hate is being forced to make decisions. Especially if it means drastic changes in themselves. The Jedi believe in leading by example, not standing behind with a whip to drive them to it as the Sith would." She shook her head sadly. "But the Jedi also try to suppress all that makes us what we are in their goal. I can understand why so many have run to the Sith rather than remain. But understand that a lot of the Sith would go the other way if they had the chance."

I was about to rebut her comment when T3 rolled up to us. He extended a data pad, which Danika looked at. She held it out to me silently.

Selene and Dustil had come together. Both were from Telos, and were strong in the Force, but she began having doubts about their training, doubts she had passed on to Dustil. They decided that removing her was the best way to end the problem. Unfortunately my son was one of the best students they had ever trained, and they didn't want to lose him too.

So they had arranged her death. She had supposedly died in a training accident.

Danika took it back wordlessly. "Now we are ready. Stand here for a moment, Carth." She opened the door, leaving it open.

"Did you make a wrong turn somewhere?" A voice asked. My heart raced. I walked forward, and saw him.

Dustil was almost my height now, still a gangly young man after his last growth spurt. He looked at me, about to say something, but the words died.

"Dustil." I whispered.

"Oh lovely. It's my father. It figures that you'd show up to ruin this too. How did you manage to get into the Academy?"

"Through the front door of course." Danika said deadpan.

He glared at her. "Cute. I wonder, does Master Uthar know what he has caught in his web? Unless you have changed sides, Father." He glared at me. "No, I can see that hasn't happened. Just why are you here, Father? Not for me, I hope. Couldn't you have just gotten yourself blown up on a ship and spared me this?"

The venom in his tone shocked me. "What are you talking about? I thought you were dead all these years!"

"Until someone told you otherwise?" He laughed. "Why didn't you pretend I was dead and leave me in peace? Did you really think I would be happy to see you?" He waved to an invisible audience. "Look everyone! My father has come to rescue me!" His face filled with loathing. "The fact that he abandoned my mother and me to death doesn't really matter, now does it?"

"I didn't abandon you! We arrived too late!" I ran my hand through my hair. "Telos was in ruins when we got there. I found your mother, held her in my arms as she died." I could suddenly picture it again. Holding her, screaming my pain and rage at the sky. Then I was back in the room. "But I looked for you. I swear I looked everywhere!"

"Save it for your memoirs, Father." Dustil snarled. "You abandoned us long before Telos was destroyed. You went off to fight the wars instead, remember? We spent every night you weren't there hoping that the enemy would never come. When you did come home it was only to make sure things hadn't changed before going off again. Other children had their fathers during that. But not me. My father had to be the hero of the Republic!"

"I was needed-"

"You were needed at home!" Dustil almost screamed. "You were needed to keep mother alive! To stop them from bombing us into oblivion! If I had been home instead of at school, I might have protected her since you wouldn't! Where were you when the Sith raiders took all of the students at my school captive? When they dumped us on a Sith world like trash?" He hissed, then waved as if to shoo me away. "Well my family is dead, but I have a new family now. A family that cares about me. One that won't forget to protect me. I don't need you anymore!"

"The Sith? The same people who killed your mother and destroyed Telos is your family?"

"Not them. In fact I have a list of those that helped murder Telos. Once I am done here at the Academy, I will deal with all of them. Besides Father, you were a soldier for all those years. How many fathers and mother's sons and daughters have you slaughtered?"

"No." I shook my head numbly. "My son-"

"I am not your son anymore, Father! Get that through your thick head. You were never there to know what I was like as a child, don't presume to know what I should be like now!"

"I came to get you out of here-" I reached out.

"Touch me and I'll kill you." Dustil said flatly. "Leave me alone or I'll promise that Master Uthar knows who you and your friend are." He gave me a feral grin. "Unless you would finish the job. Murder me to keep your secret?"

"Calm down, both of you." Danika said. We both turned on her. "Carth, remember what I said about understanding? He is a child you never paid enough attention to, and resents that." She rounded on Dustil. "And he is a father that put the lives of a lot of people ahead of his family life. He regrets that, but he's here now trying to save what remains of his family."

"Too bad, and too late. I've outgrown my 'daddy'." Dustil snapped. "The Sith will give me everything I need. Including the love I would have hoped to get from him!"

"You can't mean that!" I was close to shouting as well. "Who do you think I was protecting you and your mother from? They are the ones that killed her. They are the ones that stole you from me!"

"I am not your favorite pet or toy, Father. They are not evil, they are strong. Besides, you were fighting wars long before the Sith came."

"The Sith war to conquer and rule. To force the helpless to obey their twisted view of life. The Mandalorians are the same, just different views of the same world. I went to war to protect those I love. To protect you, Dustil."

"Yeah. Right." Dustil looked at his father almost with pity. "You just liked the uniform and the rewards."

I could feel my heart breaking. "If I failed you, don't let my failure drive you to become an evil man."

"I am not evil, and the Sith are not. Strength has always been equated with evil by the weak. Show me a single point where strength is evil, Father. Do that for your long lost son." His tone dripped vitriol.

"Do you know someone named Selene?" Danika asked. Dustil turned, but instead of growling, he looked confused.

"Yes. She was my girlfriend. We came to the Academy together. She's the reason I am here."

Danika held up the data pad. "Do you recognize this data pad?"

"Yes. It's one of Master Uthar's."

Danika handed it to him. Dustil activated it. I could tell when he got to the end of the file. His face paled, and he suddenly collapsed backwards onto his bunk.

"They said she had tried to open one of the tombs. That she had died in that attempt. But this says..."

"That they killed her." I said. "Because she was holding you back. If there had been a Republic officer here, they would have blamed him instead." I hissed. "Superiority at all costs, Dustil. That's what you are trained here to want. Your teachers decided to remove one of your obstacles, and they did, like swatting a fly. Can you live with the cost?"

Dustil looked up at me, at Danika. "They lied to me. They took..." He held the pad as if it would feel as warm as the dead girl's hand. "They took her from me." He looked up, and I could see the fury in his eyes. "They'll pay for that!"

"That is the son I remember." I stood away from him. "Let's get out of here-"

"No, Father." Dustil stood, facing off with me. "You go do whatever you have to. But I have friends here, people that will listen to me. I have to warn them. Get as many of those still salvageable out as I can. Maybe I can find out more inside here before we leave. Something that will help bring them all down."

I looked at the man my son had become, and knew that I had lost him forever. But I was proud of that decision. "I don't suppose there's anyway I can talk you out of this? I mean, it doesn't sound like you're going to do anything halfway." I smiled sadly. "Sounds familiar."

"Yes, it does. Like Father, like son." Dustil replied.

"You've admitted that the lie is a lie, Dustil. That's more than most can do. But don't ride the moment down in flames. Get out of here as fast as you can."

"I'll try, father. Maybe when this is over we can get some time to talk? I can't say I'm willing to accept your view in everything, but I promise I will at least listen to you."

"I'll try to explain everything I did. I don't care about acceptance as long as I have my son back."

"Then we'll meet on Telos afterward. Goodbye, Father."

"Goodbye and good luck, son."

We walked toward the front door of the Academy. "We need to talk." She said. "About me being Revan."

"If you're ready to talk, so am I."

"And?"

I sighed. "As much as I want to, I can't hate you. I wanted to blame everything that has gone wrong in the last four years on you, and I can't." I stopped, and faced her. "My wife, Dustil, Telos, Saul. All of it I would like to blame on you."

"Why can't you? I do." She asked softly. "I sent Malak to Telos. He suborned

Saul. Between them they killed millions including your wife. They stole away your son. How is that not my fault? As his commander, military law blames me equally."

"Because you were right aboard _Leviathan_. When Saul died, I should have felt something change. I had put all of the efforts of the past years of my life into that hunt. And when it was done, I was still empty. Killing him didn't even plant a single grass seed on Telos. It was a waste of my efforts.

"Remember what you said just today? 'Best to end their lives with at least some regret'. When I heard why Saul had gone over; the waste by everyone was obvious though it took time for me to admit it! Fools who can't find their butts with both hands driving him toward retirement. It doesn't excuse what he did, but you don't excuse anyone, do you? Especially yourself.

"Regardless of what part of you inside is still Revan, in all the time I have known you, you are and have always been your own worse critic. You have been beating yourself over the head about things you did in another life, and I have been right there beating too, from the very start. When I found out part of me wanted to scream 'I knew it!'." I sighed again, and my hand rested on her shoulder, making her look up at me. "Whatever darkness remains, that isn't who you are anymore. Whatever else the Jedi might have done with your life, they have given you a second chance.

"But there will come a time when you have a choice to make. When that happens there will be no turning back."

"What if I make the wrong choice?" She whispered.

"I'll kill you. I promise."

She laughed gently, patting my hand as if I had made a joke, not threatened her life. "My conscience I named you, and my executioner if I fall." She looked down, then at me again. There was no fear there. Only resolve. "I Thank you for that."

When we reached the front door, she hugged me fiercely. "Remember your promise, Carth. I don't want to become that again. Be ready to kill me when I return." She whispered, then was gone.


	26. Korriban: The Two Tombs

The Valley

Danika

I had never understood how someone about to die could feel free, but I did at that moment. Carth and T3 were out, and headed for the _Ebon Hawk_. I had less than 50 hours to get to the Star Map, with one of my teachers trying to get me to assassinate the Master of the Academy. At least two of those vying for the same position ready to kill me in an instant if they had the chance. The other willing to let me die if it meant getting me out of his way.

The Galaxy had much to lose if I died, but I did not. So I was free. I went to the entry to the valley. A student named Tariga had been assigned to stand at that door, and assure that everyone was warned about the dangers. There was a cave full of flying creatures named Shyrack, and a horned predator called the tuk'ata. His suggestion that I could ask for help from the security guards I took with a large dose of salt. Most of these students wouldn't ask for help, and those that would might end up on a little list of Master Uthar's.

The entry to the valley was through a rift in the mountains. I jogged along it, watching for any danger.

Millennia ago, men had stood pillars to show the Galaxy their pride. Now they were staggered by the centuries, some collapsed in ruin. Guards walked through the area, and a few researchers wandered among the wreckage.

I ran down the slope, and took it in from there. Some of the pillars, the more weathered ones, were marked in runes of the ancient Sith language. Part of me knew I should stay here, learn all I could find a reason for their antipathy. Another part screamed that there was no time.

"Magnificent isn't it?" An older man was standing beside me. He waved toward the cliffs to either side. "The tombs of the greatest masters of the Order. Naga Sadow of the original Sith race. Ajunta Pall, the first Human Dark Lord. Tulak Hord, and Marko Ragnos from more recent times." He sighed. He wasn't evil, he was an archeologist standing in an ancient place, and was awed by it.

"Of all the tombs, only one has been entered successfully, that of Naga Sadow." He pointed toward the far northwestern tip of the valley. "That one unfortunately, they won't let us explore. The Masters of the order want to keep using it as a final test for applicants." I could hear the faint outrage in his voice. A scientist stymied by politics.

"Oh, I'm Galon Lor. Chief archeologist." He looked across his domain with satisfaction. "We knew the Ancient Sith Race lived on this planet, but no one even dreamed that the Human Sith had been here for so long!"

"Aren't there records?"

"Not much from more than two millennia ago. What we did have was sketchy at best. These ruins date back to the Original Sith race before they were banished into the depths of space 4000 years ago. They are also the best preserved. No one knows what set the Sith on their self destructive path, but maybe one day I will enter Naga Sadow's tomb and find out." He sighed sadly.

"What are they letting you do?" I asked.

"They've let me do the translations of the glyphs on the faces of the other tombs at least. That is how I know which is which." He pointed at the far northeastern corner. "That is the tomb of Marko Ragnos. The most recent of the tombs. Barely 1500 years old. Some say he placed himself there to claim supremacy over all but Sadow. Down at this end," He pointed to the west. "That is the tomb of Tulak Hord, who died 2800 years ago. Little in known about him. Ragnos destroyed all records of him. But this." He pointed to the east. "Is the jewel in the crown. Ajunta Pall, the first human dark lord, dead now for 2000 years. He was the first to rebel against the Jedi teachings, and led his followers here. The glyphs claim he is actually buried here. Perhaps his sword was buried here as well."

"His sword?"

"Yes, legend claims he forged a sword himself in the old manner, using both the Force and metal in it's making. A sword that wounds both spirit and flesh." He sighed. "But until one of those young fools tries and succeeds in penetrating to the burial chamber, we will never know."

"Others have tried?"

"Maybe a dozen since I have been here. Ten years, I have waited, seeing young people try and fail."

I felt a tug from that grave. I walked away without comment, and ran up to the door. It slowly rolled back, and I entered.

Tomb

The air was dry and dusty. A layer of dust 25 millimeters thick lay on the neatly laid stone floor. There was a door ahead, and it opened at my approach. Beside it on a pintel was a carved block of stone. LEARN IN THE PATH OF THE MASTER

The passage was ten meters long less than three wide, with a sealed door at the other end. On the walls were glyphs. I looked at them carefully. A glyph of light, a glyph of knowledge, a glyph of darkness, a glyph of strength. A few meters on I saw what might have been a duplicate of this series. The floor was laced with open power cables. One wrong choice and I would be fried.

Carefully, I touched the glyph of light. It settled beneath my probing fingers, and refused to lift again. The door behind me slammed shut. I stepped to the second series of glyphs. As I had surmised, they were repeated here.

Ajunta Pall had risen to power in the Force among the Jedi, then fallen away. I reached out, and pressed the glyph of knowledge. It settled in silently. I walked to the third, also identical set. I pressed the glyph for darkness, and again, I survived. I came to the last, and pressed the glyph of strength. There was a click, and the door before me opened.

I walked down the hall to another door. This one opened, and I stepped through, feeling it close behind me. It was another room ten meters long, and on the wall was another stone tablet. WALK IN THE PATH OF THE MASTER.

The floor and walls had holes every half meter or so. Suspicious, I picked up a small stone, and threw it. Disruptors fired from the niches, reducing the stone to dust before it had gotten halfway.

I knelt, and meditated. I wouldn't be able to leap across the room. Not and hope to block a dozen or so disruptor bolts at the same time. Ajunta Pall, little was known about him. What the Jedi order did have I had not read, so that was no help. I looked at the tablet. One side was graffitied with words in a more modern dialect. _A fine upstanding member of the order_.

I stared at the simple sarcastic comment for a long time. Could it be that simple? I looked at the floor. A line of red could barely be seen in my Force-augmented sight running straight down the center of the room. I picked up another stone, and rolled it onto the floor. As it rolled down the line, nothing happened. But the instant it skittered off that path, the disruptors again reduced it to dust. I stood, and walked down the line, head up. At the other end there was a lever, and I pulled it. The next door opened before me.

A narrow walkway led across a massive chasm. In the center of it was a pillar of stone three times my height. It had been cut and shaped so that it blocked the path completely. On the face of it was another carved message. BE AS STRONG AS THE MASTER.

I touched it. The stone was ancient, one of the old pillars that lay in the valley, cut to this very purpose. I drew the Force, and lifted the stone. As I did, I angled, and it slid over into the abyss. I almost let it go, but instead moved it out of the way on the landing behind me.

There was another door at the end of the walkway, and on it sat yet another stone tablet. BE ONE WITH THE MASTER.

I opened the door. A light passage went up from the tomb, and light came down. Beneath it a tomb lay before me, and on it the sigil of Ajunta Pall. I walked toward it, and as I did, I felt the door closing behind me. Then in the light above the tomb dust whirled. As it did, it took shape, floating down to stand between the cover stone and me. The shape became clearer, then finally formed into a man. His face was heroic and tragic. His robes were ebony, and on his hip hung an empty scabbard.

"A Jedi. Here?" He looked at me. "Why have you come to this dark place, Jedi? Why do you disturb my restless sleep?"

"Ajunta Pall." I whispered.

"I had a name once... Ajunta Pall, yes, that was my name. I was one of many, first among equals. Servants of the Dark side of the force." He looked around. "Sith Lords we called ourselves, though the Sith themselves did not accept us. So very proud..." He looked back at me. "In the end we were not so proud. We fled here... We hid from the wrath of those we had betrayed. Then we fell, and even as we fell, I knew it would be so."

"Those you had betrayed?" I prompted.

"Our Jedi Masters. Those that had taught us of the Force. They warned us against the Dark side. But we discovered it, we practiced it in secret, we gloried in our newfound powers. We were discovered? Or did we flee?" He shook his head. "I can no longer remember. It has been so long. But it was here that we came. Here that we hid. Hoping to grow. Instead we fell."

"How did you fall?"

We feared our Masters, but it was not they that destroyed us. Is it not obvious what happened? We believed that all would be equals within the Force, no masters, no Padawan. Only students all, the stronger helping the weaker to learn and grow. But not all can use the Force as well as others. Jealousy sprouted. Greed. Hatred. Those with little power schemed to find a way to take what only the Force can give. Those with true power refused to hand what they learned off to others freely.

"Students learned only so they could wax fat in the Force, then replace their masters. Others schemed and stalked their equals to find the secrets maybe only one knew or could use. When subterfuge would not work, force and violence would. We fought among ourselves to see who would be the greatest among us, and we brought our own folly down upon our heads.

"Finally I stood with only students to challenge me, and I was the most powerful one. But at what cost? Friends I had held dear had died, many at my hand, and I had taken all they had from them." He looked at the tomb. "When I might have had a new apprentice I refused. For I knew that an apprentice would learn from me only enough to assure my destruction. Even when I taught all equally, there were those willing to murder each other for a perceived advantage. So eventually I did not even teach. Just hoarded the bits the Force like flinders of broken metal and glass a collector-bird considers valuable.

"Now I lay buried here, and the most powerful of our greatest secrets died with me. No one holds them now, only I remain that even knew they existed. It is fitting I think. Our power fled from our followers, and they died, but the power we had remains and infects this place." He looked back at me. "Tell me, gentle traveler, did any of the Sith survive? Did those we train go on to greatness? Have they returned at last?"

"The Sith have returned, but nothing has really changed. They still teach that only the strong will survive. They still train a single apprentice, knowing that the apprentice will one day kill their master."

"Then it has not really changed, has it?" He knelt beside his own tomb, reaching out as if to touch the stone. "So much time, so much pain, so much misery, yet we learned nothing."

"Why do you remain here?"

"Remain." He stood again. "Yes, I remain. I have spent all these years alone regretting all that I have done. All I hoped to make right has gone in the dust of memory. I remain because I tied myself to this place. I forged a sword to wield in battle. A sword made of the Force and metal, and filled with my arrogance. It bound me here, locked me into the rotting corpse I have become, refused to let me free. I had so much joy in the new faith we had taught our followers. Now I am as dead as that faith, and only the dogma of it remains. I am alone in darkness, as I was then, as I am now."

I felt a wave of pity. "Is there no way to free you?"

He looked at me. "Most would only see a tomb to plunder, power to grasp in their own hands, even if it killed them. But you... I see pity in your heart, sadness for one long dead." He waved toward the tomb. "If the sword were removed, taken from the tomb, taken off this world, perhaps it would free me. I do not wish for it to rot away as I have, to become just a lump of iron that pins me like an insect in a collection. This I would command you to do."

"I will do this." I reached out, and instead of sliding through him, I felt a solid arm. He looked down with shock, then up at me with wonder.

"How is this possible?" He reached out, and his hand slid through my face. "How can you touch me, yet I cannot touch you?"

"I don't know." I said. I ran my hand up that arm, touching his face, and he leaned into it.

"All these centuries without a human touch. It thrills me in ways you cannot imagine. Perhaps I can teach you something in return. Will you trust me?" I pulled my hand away. Then hesitantly, I reached back out. "Touch me on the forehead. Here." He touched his own head. I reached out, and as my finger touched his head, I felt something flow through me. Thoughts, dreams, and among it all, his symbol. I jerked back.

He smiled sadly. "All I have learned is now yours. Like all knowledge,it can be used for good or ill. Use it wisely." He motioned toward the stone. "There are three swords in the sarcophagus. A last test for those foolish enough to reach here, and assume they could control my power. For them I would let chance decide. But for you I have a riddle;

"I am that which grips the heart in fright, hearkens night and silence light."

He moved aside. "It was written on my sword long ago. Take the sword, and place it in the hand of the statue beyond." He pointed at the back of the chamber. "If you choose correctly, my sword is free of this prison.'

"If I choose badly?"

"That would be... Unfortunate. I would be forced to kill you."

I reached out with the Force, and lifted the stone aside. The sarcophagus lay beneath it, and I lifted the lid gingerly. As he had said, there were three sheathed swords set in brackets on the lid. I drew out the blades, and looked at each. The right hand one was the narrow wand of an ancient vibroblade. The second a shiny silvered blade. The last a worn blade as black as pitch. I carried them back to the statue of Ajunta Pall, his hand out as if to hold a sword in defense. I set them down.

The silver blade screamed of arrogance. The power of someone that knew he was supreme. The vibroblade was one of the older style, larger than normal due to the power cell that made up its pommel. The black blade was a bare workman's weapon, made to kill back before lightsabers had been discovered. Each was marked in a script I could not read.

I looked at the spirit. _A fine upstanding member of the order_ the mention that a dead hand had written. Such a man would never have been ostentatious. He would have considered a sword a tool to use not something to scream his arrogance. I picked up the black blade, sliding the hilt into the statue's grip. The statue glowed, then before my eyes began to collapse into dust. I grabbed the blade back with a cry of dismay.

Ajunta Pall smiled. "You have chosen wisely. Now take it. Take the other blades as well. Take them and go. I must go on to my darkness."

"There is no need to stay here now." I whispered.

"I fear the darkness, but I fear returning to the Force beyond it more." He replied sadly. "But I must journey into the darkness for the last time, with all of my regrets intact."

"You can return to the Force, return to the light as you yearn to." I pressed.

"Return? But I betrayed my master, betrayed his teachings. If I asked they would rebuff me." He began to fade.

I caught his arm, forcing him to return. "No. Take the chance. You have been punishing yourself for so long, would any of your masters accept that? They might have killed you or healed you, but they would have never done what you have done to yourself!"

"If only I could return" He looked past me eyes sad. "I would find my master, fall to my knees, admit my mistakes, and ask him to help me find the way again." He looked at me. "But I cannot find that way."

I reached out, and felt not his body, but his spirit in my hand. He looked at me with a smile on his face. "So adept. Can you-"

"I can only try." I said. I felt the spirit floating on my hand, the vision of him fading until he was only a glow of blackness in my hand. I stripped the hatred away, the anger, and the greed. When I was done, all that remained was a seed of light. Then I felt a direction, and pointed. "That way."

As it faded I heard voices.

_Master_

_ Ajunta, my student. Welcome home._

The tomb was just a structure now. Just stone upon stone. I picked up the sheaf of blades by their sheathes, and walked out of the tomb.

As I approached the disruptor trap, I stopped. Someone stood at the opposite end, idly flipping a stone into the air.

"I thought you might succeed." Shaardan said. He bent to pick up another stone. Then he flung one toward me. The entire row of disruptors fired, and not even dust reached me. "Curious thing about this trap. It will continue firing until whatever it shoots at is gone." He flung the second stone, bending to grab another before I could move. "So just trying to cross it with me here would kill you."

"You have made your point. What do you want?"

"You really can't be that stupid." He snarled. He reached behind him with the Force, pulling a large rounded boulder. "I want the sword. Once I give it to Master Uthar, my place as the new student is assured."

"You wouldn't have consider trying to get it yourself." I commented dryly. "It's typical of your kind, really. Always ready to take the easiest path."

"Of course it is. I am a true Sith. Not a weak-willed Jedi looking for power." He tossed the smaller stone, and stooped to grab yet another. "Now that you have gotten the sword, I think I will relieve you of that horrible burden."

"I must decline your gracious offer. I have done all the hard work and wouldn't dream of giving it up now."

"Ah, but I insist." He smiled. "After all, I can keep this up all day. I brought enough food and stims to guarantee that I will still be awake a week from now, but you didn't bring anything of the sort, did you?" He laughed. "When fatigue makes you too stupid to understand what has happened, I can drag you into the pit and let you die. Your choice."

I reached back, and took the sheaf of swords. I pulled out one on them, and made to toss it. "No." He ordered. He pulled out a small-wheeled trolley, and tied a string to it. Using the Force he pushed it across to me. "I wouldn't dream of having it destroyed. Tie it firmly."

I did as he instructed, and he pulled the trolley back along the safe line. He set the sword aside. "Now all I need is a few moments." He pushed hard with the Force. The boulder flew toward me. I ducked as the weapons ravened, shards flying past me as they reduced the man-sized rock to shards, then to dust. When the firing ended, he was gone.

I contemplated his victory calmly, then drew out Ajunta Pall's sword, looking at the ebon blade.

Acceptance

I jogged back to the Academy entrance. The cool air felt electric, and as I ran up the ramp into the central chamber, I understood why. Master Uthar stood in the center of the room, surrounded by the dozen or so students. Kneeling at his feet was Shaardan.

"Well, applicant, you asked the presence of all of the students. Speak."

Shaardan pulled out the sheath, extending it toward Master Uthar. "Master, I have penetrated the tomb of Ajunta Pall, and retrieved his sword!" There was a buzz of anticipation from the students and teachers. Uthar reached forward, and Shaardan placed the sheath in his hands.

Uthar drew the silver blade, looking at it critically, then slammed it down, shattering the blade on the stones. "You fool. Did you think you could lie to us about such an artifact? Any fool with a brain would have looked in our archives, and discovered what Ajunta Pall's sword looks like. But you, it seems, thought a lie would be sufficient. This is the second time you have tried to gain admittance, and you have proven to be a fool as well as incompetent. This will be the last time you try."

Uthar reached out, and Shaardan caught at his throat, choking. "The Sith do not need either fools or liars. Do you have anything to say before you die?" Shaardan gasped, looking at me with entreaty, then his neck snapped and the body sagged. "I didn't think so." Uthar released his grip, and the body fell limply to the floor. "You have all received a salutary lesson. Do not lie to me. I am not amused by it. Return to your studies."

I walked past the body, and returned to my room. I set the sword in my footlocker, then went to find Yuthura.

"I gained Ajunta Pall's sword." I reported.

"I hear you eliminated some competition while you were at it." She said, grinning. "Shaardan would never have made a good Sith anyway."

"Tell me more of your life." I asked.

She tensed. "Why? Have I invaded into your privacy?"

"Yuthura, I am just curious. You seem to have been driven by what happened in your past, and I wish to see what drives you."

She grimaced. "There is no need-"

"There is every need." I replied. "You wish me to trust you in removing Master Uthar, yet you are not willing to trust me with this small piece of data?"

She shrugged. "I don't see the harm in that. I was a slave on Sleheryon, owned by Omeesh the Hutt as I have already told you. To the Hutt a slave is less than nothing, and can never be anything else in their eyes. I was a pleasure slave, and Omeesh liked nothing better than to find things that distressed my spirit and force me to do them. He used to boast that I didn't have the brains to deny him." Her face grew feral. "But I burned with hate for the worm. I promised myself that I would become more than he imagined. That I would crush those like him before I died.

"One evening, while he was in a drunken stupor, I killed him, and freed myself from my collar. I slipped aboard a small freighter. The crew found me as they entered the next system. They were not happy. The Hutt would have considered them guilty of aiding me, even though they had not. They used me, and then abandoned me on a desolate planetoid alone. They thought I would ask to go back to my slavery, but anywhere was better than Sleheryon.

"When I was rescued, I thought it was luck. But the Jedi that found me told me it was because they could feel my presence in the Force. I had it within me, and that untrained need had drawn them to me.

"The Jedi found you." I looked around. "How is it that you are among the Sith instead."

"I see no need to tell you such a personal thing."

"Yuthura, we were both Jedi at one time. I felt that perhaps we could become friends."

"Friends will stab you in the back without a thought. I have no need for friends."

"Is that so." I leaned forward. "A friend is one you know will not harm you. That will cover your back as you have asked me to do in removing Master Uthar. I would really like to be friends with someone that expects so much of me."

"You have odd ideas for someone who wishes to become a Sith." She shook her head, smiling. "But your demonstration in the colony tells me that you share at least one hatred."

"I cannot abide slavery." I admitted. "Juhani, my friend, came within a centimeter of becoming slave to the man that murdered her father. I would have killed everyone on this planet rather than let that happen."

"Yes." The word was a hiss of hate. "The Jedi didn't understand that. They took me in for training, though I was much older than the average Padawan. But I never progressed past the Padawan-learner stage. I had discipline, but no peace. The hatred of slavery kept me from being at peace with the universe, but my teachers held me back. They wanted me to become like them, uncaring monsters that allowed slavery in the Galaxy because of personal freedom.

"Personal Freedom!" She snarled. "The slavers have the right on too many worlds to enslave others. While on those same worlds, a slave cannot be freed because it violates the slaver's rights! I wanted to free them all, to send all of the slavers to the hells they deserve.

"Finally I couldn't stand it anymore. I left the Academy on Brunwald, and came here almost six years ago. They say the Dark Side is evil, but at least the Sith are willing to use their skills to do something!"

"So you came here, to learn how to kill slavers everywhere." I said softly. "Yet you are still here. Have things changed so much?"

She growled. "My hate has not diminished. Nor my resolve. I know it might sound strange, but Master Uthar tells me it is my compassion that stands in my way. When I can kill without compunction, I will be ready."

"But if you lose your compassion for the slaves you wish to free, what will you have remaining?" I stood, touching her shoulder. "It is your compassion that drew you so vehemently to this cause, yet without it the slaves are merely people in the wrong place. Soon you would see the slavers in the same light as well and then what help would you be?"

"You're trying to confuse me!" She looked panicked. "You don't know what being a slave is like!"

"Compassion again, and anger that I who have not been a slave would deny your quest." I said. "Yuthura. If I had been there when you were a slave I would have freed you."

"Revan freed me, to come here." She said.

"Revan?" I felt my heart freeze. "You knew Revan?"

"Well, I met her." She shrugged. "When I was on that planetoid, I had to scavenge for food. I ate things during my time there that sicken me even now. One day almost six years ago I was coming back to my shelter and there was a woman with a mask standing there. She named herself as Revan, and told me that my pain had drawn her to me.

"I was suspicious. While I had heard of Jedi, I had never met one and knew little about them. I was sure that she was merely a gentler slaver than most. I ran and hid. But she followed me. I tried to strike her but she merely waved her hand and stopped me. Finally I grew too tired to fight, and slept. But when I awoke I was not on a ship with a collar. I was still on the planetoid and before me were an array of survival tools I had only dreamed of before.

"A week passed, and I felt that she had gotten tired of dealing with me. But then she returned. She had been on a mission, you see. She asked me if I would be willing to come with her. I said yes." She shook her head. "Not long after I fled the Jedi, she came here. She slew the Master at that time, and challenged all that stood to fight her and her disciple Malak. When we refused, she entered the tomb of Naga Sadow, and departed. A few months later, she came back, telling us that she was now Dark Lord, and commanded us all to do her will.

"She spoke of a new order, with the Republic and the Sith under one hand, and nothing in the Galaxy able to stand against our combined will. But in the end Malak outshone her. Such is the way of the Sith. Why do you ask?"

"It has been rumored that Revan is still alive." I said.

"What of it? She was a fool to let Malak ambush her in that way. Unless she has gained in power, there is no way that she can regain her place as Dark Lord."

"What if that isn't what she wants?" I asked. "What if the Jedi have redeemed her?"

"Then it is harder for her than before. Do you honestly think Malak will let her live if he discovers it?" She shook her head. "No, he'll find her and kill her, wherever she is."

I stood. "I am going to get some sleep. Then I am going to gift Master Uthar with the Sword."

"Sleep well, friend." She smiled hesitantly, but it grew brighter as I smiled gently in return.

"Be well, friend."

Tomb

A few hours later, I arose, and prepared myself. Master Uthar was still in the central room, and I walked over, dropping to my knees.

"What do you want?" He asked. I extended the sword of Ajunta Pall.

"What is this?"

"The sword of Ajunta Pall which Shaardan tried to steal from me." I replied.

He stood, drawing the blade from its sheath. He looked at it for a long moment. Then roared. "Assemble the students!"

I stayed kneeling as everyone came as ordered. He held up the sword. "Look upon Ajunta Pall's Sword!" He roared. Then he pointed toward me. "Look at she who gained it for us!" He reached out, and helped me to my feet. He led me to a door off the central chamber, and it opened. Within was a large room filled with artifacts of the Sith. He took the sword to a statue similar to that which had once been within Pall's tomb, and inserted the sword into the statue's hand. "Blessed is she that returns such an artifact. Can she do more to prove her worth?"

"I know the Code of the Sith." I replied.

He led me back to the Central chamber. "Answer well. Peace is a lie, there is only..."

"Passion."

"Through passion I gain..."

"Strength."

"Through strength I gain...

"Power."

"Through power I gain..."

"Victory."

"Through victory..."

"My chains are broken."

"The Force shall free me." He finished with a satisfied smile. "Tell me, young one, knowing the words, and what they mean are two different things. Would you agree?"

"Yes."

"Then answer true or false, Mercy is for us to decide."

"False. There is no mercy."

Excellent." He clapped me on the shoulder. "You have proven yourself worthy of being the newest pupil. You have bested them, and only one thing remains. If you fail, another will take your place. If you succeed, Mekel and Lashowe will be sent away today."

"The tomb of Naga Sadow." I said.

"Ah, you have heard of the test. Does it frighten you?"

"No, Master. I have done more dangerous things."

"Well spoken if brash. When you are ready-"

"I am ready now, Master Uthar."

He looked at me for a long moment. "Then to death or glory. Come."

We waited long enough for Yuthura to be called. Then we started down into the valley of the Dark Lords. Uthar led us, with Yuthura pacing me and ignoring me.

We reached the tomb, and my own memory remembered how the tomb was opened. Uthar reached out, touching the panels of stone in a simple pattern, and the vault door opened. We walked in, and he stopped, sealing the door behind us.

"Here, young student, we separate out the true Sith from those pallid ones who only aspire without true worth. You have earned this chance."

"Indeed you have." Yuthura purred.

Uthar looked at her with loathing. "I don't like your tone, Yuthura. What are you up to this time?"

"Why nothing, Master." She lied smoothly. "I am merely agreeing with your assessment."

"Indeed." His tone spoke volumes. Uthar looked back to me. "You must go on from here alone, as did Revan and Malak so many years ago. When you reach the ancient Star Map. There you will find a lightsaber among other things. The Lightsaber is your initiation present. Return to us when you have it, for that is not all you have to do."

"Be cautious." Yuthura said. "Like all the tombs of this valley, this one has it's own defenses. They have been left intact for this test."

"Yes, indeed." Uthar added sourly. "You understand what you must do?"

"Find the star map, pick up the lightsaber, return." I replied.

"Good. Yuthura and I will await your return."

I turned, facing the inner door. I walked up to it, and pressed the button. A dark hall stretched forward, and as I walked through the door, I felt it close behind me. Ahead was an intersection, and beyond that a ramp. I started to step forward, then stopped myself ten meters back. A small piece of debris lay on the floor, and I flipped it into the center. As it came down a flash of energy ripped across the stone, and the debris bounded into the air, smoking. It hop scotched across the intersection, barely half of it reaching the other side.

Yet down that ramp it also skittered as energy blasted it again and again. Finally the discharge died because, I noted sourly, the rock had been destroyed. I flipped another piece to land near where the first had finally been destroyed, but this time there was no discharge. The system only activated that far because it had started in the intersection.

Other pieces proved the all of the other sections including the entry way for ten meters were the same. If the floor of the intersection was touched, the other sections were activated. I stepped back tight against the left wall, and focused on the wall of the east section. Then I sprinted forward. Before my foot hit the center block, I leaped, and rebounded from the inner wall to land sprawling on the floor past it.

There was another downward ramp, and I paced down it. Ahead was a door, and outside the door a corpse. I checked the walls, and found where a needle gun was installed. A handful of dust into the air revealed a light trip at knee level. By breaking the beam I would have caught a burst of needles. I stepped over it.

The door hissed open, and I smelled a rank stench. Leaning forward, I looked around the corner. Terentateks, a pair. They wandered around at the opposite end of the room, snuffling at a few corpses that were on the floor. I started to back up, and found that the door I had just passed through had closed silently behind me. There was a latch to press, but the door didn't move. Again I looked at the Terentateks. Beyond the one to my right, was what looked like a lever. Beside it was also a door.

I considered what I would have to do. Get past them, through the opposite door. I had discovered in dealing with the Terentatek on Kashyyyk that while powerful and well-equipped for slaughter, they weren't fast except in a straight run. Maybe I could use that to my favor. I stepped out, and whistled sharply. They spun in place, then began a lumbering run in my direction. As the first came almost close enough to strike, I leaped up onto its back, then leaped again before it could react, landing on the second one. I was on the ground running toward the lever as I heard the collision of the first Terentatek with the wall as it tried to follow.

I flipped the lever, then punched the door control frantically. The second Terentatek had turned, and was coming back, a screeching bellow cutting through my brain. The door opened, and I leaped inside as it slammed into the lintel. The door was too small for it to pass, something it figured out rather quickly, and I frantically crabbed back away from the door as it tried to reach inside. A claw scratched across the sole of my boot, but the fingers of that monstrous hand were too short to catch it.

I stood, backing away from the monster glaring at me from the doorway. A pair of stone pillars stood in the center of the room, and after some probing on one, I found a small niche. A golden key lay there, and I picked it up. On the key a Sith Rune read LEFT. In the second pillar I found another identical key, marked with the rune RIGHT. There was no way out of the room except back past the now furious Terentateks. Another problem I faced was the door I had entered through was easily large enough for a Terentatek to follow.

The Terentatek near the door had moved back, glaring at me sullenly. It knew I would have to get past it, and I knew from what records the Jedi had that they were a patient species. I discovered by thinking about it that I could deal with the problem, but I first had to get out of this room, across the next, and up that ramp.

I needed some space to get a run up, and I moved as far back as the room allowed. The Terentatek hissed, watching my preparations. I took a deep breath, found that calm center so necessary to a Jedi, and became one with it. Then suddenly I leaped forward. I ducked under the swing of the first Terentatek, rolling between the legs of the second, and was up running toward the door as they turned around.

The door hissed open, and I was through it before the claws could rip me apart, leaping to pass over the light trip running up the ramp as fast as I could. Behind me the needle gun stuttered, and there was a crash as the offending equipment was ripped from the wall. Ahead of me I could see the intersection, and just before my foot would have landed on the floor, I leaped, putting every muscle and all of the force into it.

I flew over the floor of the intersection, and behind me the first Terentatek stepped on it. I rolled frantically as I hit the floor, and sprawled out just past the section of hot floor. Behind me I heard keening screams. Unable to stop in time, the first Terentatek staggered around less than ten meters from me, still trying to charge me. I watched it's legs fry off, and its torso slammed to the blazing stones. Behind it, I could see the second Terentatek. It had skidded to a stop just short of the hot region on that side, and stood growling at me as it's partner was slowly fried away.

It took a long time. Terentatek are big, and the machinery only fried it a centimeter or two at a time. When it's agonized screaming died, the one that remained hissed, trying to come up with a way to reach me without entering that hell. I watched it as the dead Terentatek was reduced to ash, then even the ash was blown away.

It snarled. Claws closing and opening. "Well!" I shouted. "Come on!" I picked up a pair of stones, and flung one to land in the now quiescent hot spot on that side. It stopped, looking at the stone, then screamed, charging. It made a leap past the center section. As it did, I the other stone hit the center plate.

Instantly the process started again. The creature actually made it far enough to take a swipe at me before its legs were gone. It scrabbled forward using its forelegs. But only the arms and torso reached the safe area where I was. I skipped up onto its back, and my lightsaber punched down into its brain ending its misery. I leaped off it past the hot section to the north, and ran down the ramp.

At the bottom was a door. I opened it, gasping at the acrid stench in the air. A pool of acid lay before me, covering the floor from a meter or so from where I stood, to the door on the opposite wall. To my right was a pillar, to my left another pillar. I looked at the two keys, and walked over to the left pillar, then paused. What if they had also meant right as in correct? Or left as in being left standing here? I walked to the right pillar, and inserted the key.

A bridge rose, the acid flowing through channels. I gingerly crossed it, and opened the door. It led to yet another ramp, this one climbing steeply. I ran up it, and opened a door. Before me was the pintel of the Star Map. It opened as I approached, and the glory of their creation glowed in mid-air. I scanned it, and immediately crossed past it to a kneeling statue. On the outstretched palm of the statue's hand, was an ornate lightsaber. I flicked it on, grunting at the red beam. All this works for something this gaudy.

I looked around the room. On the walls were carvings of the alien builders. One of them caught my eye, and I moved closer. A shape that looked like a short lightsaber pommel floated above a star, exactly like the Star Forge in my vision.

I turned, retracing my steps. At the base of the ramp, standing on the bridge, were Master Uthar and Yuthura.

"You return with your new weapon in hand, as I foresaw." Uthar purred.

"The Force has served you well, young one." Yuthura agreed.

"You took great risks gaining your prize, young student. You had to use all of your skills, and much more. No peaceful meditation, no pacifism, all adrenaline caused by fear and hatred.

"Sometimes you must fight and kill in order to achieve your goals. This uses your passion, it makes you stronger, and in the end, it makes you superior. This is the lesson we teach with this final entry test."

"Are you saying a Jedi could not have gained this?" I flipped the lightsaber.

"When a Jedi acts, it is with skill and courage, true." Uthar admitted. "But the Jedi teaches that passion for anything is counterproductive. That only in achieving inner peace can you find true strength. But think.

"Did you not feel the excitement of entering a place that might lead to your death? Did your passions not flow when you faced the Terentatek? Satisfaction at their deaths? Didn't you feel more alive than you have ever been just passing over the acid? What real purpose is served by denying any of this? I would tell you that the Jedi have their own purposes for denying such, and since you have fled them to come here, you must know it. They restrict because they want to. To keep the passions of youth from overriding the so-called wisdom of age. They don't want excellence; they want plodders like themselves."

"The Sith are not the only ones who strive and risk their lives."

"True. But the Jedi deny their passion. They claim they fight only when they must, but is that really true? Doesn't each of them have their own causes they will fight to attain? Revan when she was among us claimed she was going to reconcile the Sith and Jedi, find a weapon so powerful that peace would last a millennium. Yet she came to us because the Jedi could not do it alone. We never deny a part of our struggle, or our strength in fighting it. We are superior because we do not lie to ourselves."

"I can't believe that." I growled. "I don't feel superior, even to those the Sith would call weak. I bleed and die as they do."

"If you came to the Academy, you must have felt that yearning as every one of the weak do. To give yourself to the dark side, to become more powerful than anyone can imagine. All any of our Masters here can do is show you the path, we cannot put your feet on it. You have followed it this far, caused the death of another student to stand here. It is up to you to decide if you will continue."

"And if I would not?"

"Your can continue on the way of the Sith, or you can die here. Someone with such power cannot be allowed to escape."

There it was. The steel fist in the velvet glove. I nodded slowly. "I think I am beginning to understand."

"Good." Uthar slapped his hands together, rubbing them sharply. "Now for the last of this test. You have learned some lessons in competition, and arranging for me to kill Shaardan was well done. But do you have it within you to kill directly?

"All things compete in life. Even the smallest organism knows it must kill or deprive another of the necessities of survival to succeed. To stand still is to die, now or the near future. Even societies face this. So it is among us. Compete for honor. Win or die. No other options exist. Mercy is a thing created by the weak to stay the hand of the strong, so it is irrelevant.

"So your final test is to strike down another for no other reason than to deny this mercy the weak claim. Normally, I would have arranged to have a student here that you might have feelings for. But there were none. However I find that Yuthura and you have become friends, and she is perfect. Kill her, and prove your worth."

Yuthura leaped back, drawing her lightsaber. "So this is what you planned all along! To have me killed!"

"My dear apprentice, I told you your compassion was a weakness. Do you think I didn't see it in action when you met this one? Why would someone protecting a weak fool from slavers get into the Academy otherwise? You have ambition without the skill to make that ambition fact. That is your weakness, and I am going to exploit it!"

"No, my dear master." Yuthura hissed. "It is time for you to die! My pupil stands with me."

"Is this true, young one?" As he asked, Uthar moved so that we were standing like a triangle with mutually opposing points. "You wish to stand with this compassionate fool against me?"

"Compassion is not a weakness, regardless of what you say, Uthar. I stand with her."

"Do you hear that, my master!" Yuthura caroled. "That is the sound of a new wind blowing through the Academy! Of a new master taking her place!"

"Then face a Sith master and die!" He screamed. As his lightsaber ignited, I pushed with the Force, throwing Yuthura aside. Uthar paused, confused, then screamed as I used the Force to throw him off the bridge into the acid pool. He came up screaming now in pain, and I blocked as I cut at him, slicing through the haft of his lightsaber, and taking off both legs at the knee as he went over the bridge and into the pool on the other side. I spun, the blade punching through his chest as he flailed there.

Yuthura stood, looking at me oddly. "You stopped me from fighting. Why?"

"Because you're not lost to the light yet, Yuthura. Murdering Uthar to take his place might have been the last step to damn you." I shut down the lightsaber, reaching out toward her. "Yuthura, come back to us."

She sneered. "Betrayer! A Jedi pretending to be my friend! I really liked you, Danika. But I share power with no one." She lit her lightsaber, the blade blocked by my own.

"I don't want power."

"I wish I could believe that. I will try to be quick." She rained a flurry of blows on me, my lightsaber blocking each. Then I reached out with the Force, and she caught at her face, the lightsaber falling as I squeezed her head. She screamed, falling to her knees. "Pl-lease! Mercy!"

I released the grip. My lightsaber pointed at her. "A Sith begging for mercy? Something they deny everyone else? Are you really a Sith?"

She looked away, then sighed. "I suppose I am not." She answered looking up at me. "Any other student would have struck me down, taken my place. But you are not like the other students somehow. I don't know why that is, but it is the truth. I was right when we first met, wasn't I? You're different. Something we have not faced in a long time."

I pulled out the datapad, and the Star Map glowed in mid air. "I have what I came for. Not to be a Sith, not to kill you. Not even to kill him." I waved toward the seething acid. "Just this."

"You're too good for me to believe that you had to train when you came here. I should have realized it sooner. So, what now? Do I gain mercy? Will you just let me live?"

"Tell my first why you tried to kill me."

"You reminded me too much of what I was like when I first came to the Sith. I didn't want to think about that."

"Maybe you do need to think about it." I said. "Has becoming a Sith assured the end of your quest? Has even one slave been freed by your actions?"

"You're right." She whispered. "In my search for power, I have forgotten those who are enslaved as I had been. All the things I wanted to do all the wrongs that I wanted to right. None of them have been accomplished. I have moved farther away from that idealist I was every day, and allowed myself to be blinded to that fact."

"Maybe you need to change that." I shut off my lightsaber, holding out a hand. "Maybe you need to find peace within before you can find it out there."

"The Jedi tried to show me that. I don't think I can make up for what I have done since."

"No one is beyond redemption, Yuthura. Only their own unwillingness to accept it makes them beyond redemption."

"I know I no longer belong here, but I don't think I belong among the Jedi. I must be my own person again first. I have you to thank for showing me that." She took my hand, and stood.

"Don't write off the Jedi so easily. It is said that even Revan was redeemed."

"I will believe that when I meet her." She replied.

"Go to Coruscant. I will see what I can arrange in time. But when you leave, go through the caves."

"Yes, I think I would like to compare our travails with Revan when I meet her. But you have things you must do and I must assist you. We go together or not at all."

I gripped her hand tightly, then we ran out of the tomb. At the entrance, I used my 'Sith' lightsaber to slash the entire stone face of the door down to it's bottom, causing the door to collapse, sealing the tomb for all time. No more

students would die trying to walk that hellish path.


	27. Korriban: Gauntlet

Gauntlet

As we approached the entryway to the Academy, I saw three students standing guard. One of them, a woman saw us coming. "You! You went into the tomb of Naga Sadow with Master Uthar. Where is he?"

"He is dead. I killed him."

"We felt his death, but no one stepped forward to claim his title!" She tore at her hair. "What manner of monster would slay our leader and not take his place? Yuthura cannot be found, the others are fighting over who shall be master in their place." She saw Yuthura. "You caused this! What kind of Sith are you?"

"I am not a Sith." She snapped. "I am a Jedi!"

"Traitor! Spy! Kill them!" The woman screamed.

"But if she defeated Master Uthar, what chance do we have?" One of the others whined.

"Spineless coward! There are only two of them! kill them!" She lit her lightsaber, charging at me. I dodged aside, my second blade cutting across her spine, and dropping her.

"Don't make me kill you." I said to the others. They lit their lightsabers, and charged. I caught the first one with the Force, throwing him against his friend. The lightsaber in the second man's hand punched into the first man's back, and he screamed, collapsing. The other dropped his lightsaber in horror, falling to kneel beside the body.

"Stay here, and you might live." I told him, running on into the Academy. It was a madhouse.

Students, apprentices, Sith teachers stood around the dueling area. In the center, a large man was standing over a kneeling woman who had lost both arms at the forearm to a lightsaber. He spun, her head flying aside, then faced the small crowd. "Does anyone else challenge me?" He screamed. He saw us. "Yuthura at last!"

"Who is he?" I asked.

"The Sword master, Adrenas. I must face him."

I caught her arm, then walked past her. "Watch my back." I ordered. I stalked forward.

"Ah, the newest hopeful. Haven't even gone through my class, yet you can best me, eh?" There was a polite giggle from someone in the crowd. "Do we have a name for the new 'master' that faces me?"

I stopped a few meters from him. "I am Danika Wordweaver. But once you knew me by another name."

"And what would that name be?"

"Revan Chandar Bai Echana, Daughter of Coroli, prefect of Echana." I replied.

"Revan!" someone gasped. The name filtered through the crowd, and everyone was watching me.

Adrenas stared at me, then laughed. "A bold jest, fool. But can your bluff match my skill?"

We struck at each other, sabers igniting and impacting in almost the same instant. I blocked as he cut at me furiously. In those seconds, I knew him to be an efficient warrior with a lightsaber. He was good, I would grant, but his style was almost all attack. I was pushed back by his attacks, the crowd giving way to avoid us.

But good on the attack means you are weak on defense, as I had learned twice from Master Zhar. Once as Revan, and again as Danika. I felt the wall behind me five meters, and struck at him, then spun, running toward the wall with every erg of my own strength plus the Force. If you would try this, and you were a small man or a woman, you would go for height, to attack from above. He knew that as well as I.

I hit it at chest level with my foot, but instead, I flew straight back at chest level. The way to picture this is to watch a swimmer in a race with laps. At the last second they spin, their legs absorbing their momentum, then thrusting them back toward the other end. I kicked away from the wall with the force, adding a spin, so I came back at him even faster than I had run, whirling like a child's toy made from just a propellor and shaft.

He had less than a second to react, his blade already aimed upward to impale me if I had dived upon him. His eyes widened, and it dipped, but my spinning saber-staff blocked his last minute thrust. I passed him, landing on the floor with my hands, and springing to my feet as I spun to face him again.

The body had been cut many times, his forearms still holding the active saber hit the ground, followed by his torso below his shoulders, then the forward leg and remainder of the torso, and finally his hips and legs. To the viewers, it was as if a madman had run him through a food processor, and piled the meat for later cooking. I was still gasping as the hands finally relaxed their grip, and the blade died, the beam no longer impaling his upper body.

"Revan." someone whispered. Then shouted. "Lead us!"

"Revan is dead!" I shouted. "I am Danika Wordweaver, Jedi!"

If I had distilled madness and released it as a gas I could have done no more damage. With the true master a Jedi rather than Sith, nothing held them back anymore. With one voice they screamed, and attacked. There were maybe thirty students at the moment, half as many apprentices and teachers, and everybody was fighting everybody else, making up for whatever grudges they held while they had the chance. We waded into the fray, killing only when someone stood between the entrance or attacked us directly. Lashowe came running down from the central chamber screaming, and I cut her legs from under her, then turned to give her the coup de grace. I soun, snatching a thrown lightsaber from the air, glaring up at Mekel.

"If you want to fight, I will kill you." I growled. He turned, running away. I tossed the lightsaber contemptuously aside, and entered the central chamber. I went to the museum, and inside found the sword of Ajunta Pall. I had promised to remove it, and I felt that he would want it as far from this planet as possible.

"Revan!" I spun, running to help Yuthura. Seven masters and teachers had engaged her. Someone was starting to think and organize instead of just reacting, and if we didn't flee, they would overwhelm us. She killed three, then a fourth even as she was speared through the chest. I was a dervish of destruction in retaliation. I stopped, looking at the ones I had killed, then dropped to my knee. She caught my hand.

"Come, I have to save you."

"No. She reached out, touching my arm. "You did save me, Rev-" She shuddered, and died.

I left the Academy, dealing with the guards that tried to stop me, and ran on into the colony. It was chaos there as well. Every hopeful had felt the death of the Master, and had gone just as mad as the Academy.

A hand waved, and I dived out of the maelstrom into the Cantina.

"You're doing, no doubt." Mika Dorin commented, hooking a thumb at the madhouse the colony had become.

"Things happen." I agreed.

"I heard a rumor, tell me it isn't true."

"What was it?"

"That you faced off against a Krayt Dragon and instead of killing it, you fed Calo Nord the bounty hunter to it?"

"That I did." I agreed.

"Try to be more careful in the future." He admonished. He went to the bar, and began dumping items into a bag. "If you die, who will defeat Malak?"

"Even if I die today eventually, someone will." I told him.

"Yeah, but eventually could really mess up our profit margin." He closed the bag, mounting it on his belt. "Right now I think it is time to get out of the business of a Publican and get into what I do better. Sales from a ship on the Star-road."

We fought our way through the crowds of madmen toward the docking bays. Dorin broke away, tossing me a jaunty wave to head toward his own ship. I laughed like a maniac as I pushed my way through toward the Ebon Hawk. I had never felt so alive in my life!

I came up the ramp past the blast door, and suddenly stopped. The intruder lights of Ebon Hawk were activated, the ramp up.

I gulped. So this is what they had done. Rigged whatever they planned into the intruder system itself. I paced slowly around the disc. Even though I didn't intend to try, my mind was racing. I could easily dive below the disc of the ship or leap on her dorsal side; there I would only have the turret to deal with. The interrupter plate protecting the scanner dish would give me a clear field of entry, and my lightsaber would make short work of the hull metal. But then...

Canderous would know I could do that. He would be in that turret ready to kill me, and he'd know what I could do whichever way I went. All it would take is one person standing at a button somewhere aboard; hell, even a dead man circuit, or simple heart monitors so that even one person aboard dying in my attempt would blow the ship up.

I stopped before the bow, seeing Jolee, Juhani and Carth inside the cockpit, looking back. Then I bowed my head, and knelt, setting down my lightsaber and the precious data pad. Whatever happened to me in the next seconds, the data pad had to survive. As for the lightsaber, I had been trained to deflect blaster bolts, but the turret guns and intruder guns of the Ebon Hawk would make mincemeat of me if I even tried.

I stood, then moved to the side to place myself directly before the paired main guns on the port flank. Not only to make sure my death was quick, but to avoid having my blood splatter over the data pad. I looked at the ship, knowing that I was about to die, then bowed my head again and waited for the end. I felt...

At peace. If I had to die, it was a good time. I lifted my comlink. "Carth?"

"I hear you."

"Please, make it quick."

"Danika, listen very carefully." Carth's voice suddenly bellowed over the external loudspeaker.

"We..." Juhani

"Trust..." Jolee

"You..." Canderous

"Danika..." Mission.

"Welcome home." Carth said.

I bgean to laugh in relief, and it took me three tries to pick up my lightsaber and the data pad with the Force. I walked to the ramp. It came down, and HK47 stood there.

"Query: You know, Master, I really hate being ordered to kill you." He said.

That made me laugh harder. "How many times has this happened?" I asked manically.

"Irritated complaint: Don't get me started." HK replied. I passed him, and the little homing missile named Sasha hit me. I hugged her, carrying her into the mess hall.

Carth stood there, looking a little less haunted. I tossed the data pad to him. "Get us out of here. Take us to Yavin. We need a breather before the final hurdle."

"Yes, Danika." He said running toward the cockpit. I sat at the table, feeling my crew- No my _friends_ around me, Sasha was hugging me as if she had been afraid I would never come back. I had never felt so content in my life.

Enroute to Yavin

Jolee

She didn't have that haunted look any more. The Danika that returned to our ship was calmer, more alive than she had been when she left. Carth had taken us out in a spiral that kept any ground fire from hitting us. It was a good thing too. One of the Czerka ships in orbit had fired on us, but then blew up when guns on the surface ripped it apart. Everyone on the planet seemed to have gone mad. Danika explained. The Master of the Academy was dead, the one who had been poised to take his place had walked away without doing so, and the upper echelons were in the midst of adverse negotiation.

We made the jump to hyperspace without a problem, barreling through space toward Yavin. Danika was again operating on that hunch the Force makes so strong; someone was in danger.

Once Sasha was settled into bed, Danika came to the mess hall for a quiet cup of tea. She smiled at me.

"You never really told me why you came with us, Jolee." She said.

"Good food, warm beds, a 'fresher when I start to get ripe, what else does a man really need?" I asked.

"No, really. You spent a long time on Kashyyyk-"

"How many 'oh my gods' sized trees do you have to see to know you've seen enough?" I snapped. "Have you ever stayed in one place a really long time? I bet fifteen minutes is your record. With nothing but trees and homicidal wildlife to keep you company, you finally get to the point where it's more fun to get back into space and on with your life. See something new for once. Is that too much to ask?"

"No I guess not."

"There, was that so hard to figure out? An old man is allowed his foibles. Nice to see you can agree with me for once. Fact is that while Kashyyyk felt like home, once I saw you, and knew your destiny was at hand, I felt a hankering to follow along and witness it."

"Like Andor Vex." She replied with a smile.

"Well not everyone I knew got thrown into a matter converter."

"You know my destiny? She asked intently.

I harrumphed. "Of course not. I can see that you have a destiny before you, but the way is dark. Everything I see is in a haze of darkness that might be building." I squinted at her, then stood up, turning on another light. "Okay, that's better."

She chuckled.

"Besides, you've had Jedi telling you to be wary of your future since you were a kid. You don't need another old fart telling you which way to go."

"Tell me of what you see."

"Nope. Your future is there, and will come of it's own accord soon enough. Looking into the furute is a good way to ruin your eyes. I wouldn't worry too much. You remind me of Nomi and that can't be all bad."

"Nomi?"

"Nomi Sunrider. She came late to the force and became one of the greatest Jedi that ever lived. A fine lass, with a figure-" I shuddered. "Don't let me think too much of her. My old heart can't stand it.

"Whether you follow the same path remains to be seen. What I can tell you is that you're not going to get very far along it if you spend your time jawing with antiques like me."

"So you're only along as an observer? To watch me soar to the heights, or crash and burn?"

"Balderdash. Have I ever denied you any assistance I could give? How confused can one human being be?"

"The only time you deny me assistance is when I want a straight answer." She replied.

"Well being here brings back all sorts of memories. Not all of them good. This little escapade reminds me of my adventures before the Exar Kun War. Now those were exciting times."

"Adventures?"

"Did I say anything about adventures? I don't know what's worse, my hearing or your memory."

. "So you're going to stonewall me again?"

"Didn't I say that my past is my own business? Shoo!"

"Stop being an old coot."

"A coot I might be, but most youngsters are nice enough not to rub my face in it. Besides, you really don't want to hear about it. It's ancient history from before your parents were even conceived. History bores kids. Proven fact. Just ask any educator."

"But some of us adore history." She grinned. "And the best way to learn history is to get an old coot talking about when he was young." She shrugged. "Proven fact. Just ask any kid."

"Fine, just don't whine to me about it later. I was an adventurer, all right? I had barely been accepted for training as a Jedi. I had a full head of hair, lots of testosterone, and an eagerness to see everything that could be seen." I grinned at her. "Sound like someone you know?"

"Except for the testosterone, yes."

"Well women have their equivalent. Especially when it comes to bull headedness. The Council never was happy with Jolee Bindo, let me tell you. Even less so when I began my smuggling career."

She looked at me, and I could hear the laughter in her voice. "You were a smuggler?"

"Hey, wipe that smirk off your face. I wasn't always a wrinkled old man! Well at the time the Ukatis system was being blockaded. Might have made more sense if it had been an enemy, but their own king was doing it. Every time his people started talking about unimportant stuff like rights, he'd slap on a blockade, and starve them a while.

"The Senate was trying to negotiate, and doing about as well as you'd expect; not a damn bit of good, so I decided to do something about it. I found a guy who had a ship, and we began smuggling food to them."

"That must have cost a lot."

"Might have if we'd actually paid for anything we were shipping. Some were happy to donate some stuff, but there are always those types that look at their pocketbook first. So we had to liberate some of it."

"You _stole_ it?"

"Stole is such an ugly word. That's why I called it liberating." I replied piously. "After all, if they had been even a little bit merciful or even fiscally intelligent, they would have donated the stuff for the tax write off. I just considered it a tax on the greedy. They wrote it off on their taxes under theft, the prople got fed, so everyone benefited. We did pretty well for a while. Only got caught once. A Ukatis frigate tried to chase us down on the way out, shot us up pretty bad too. We crashed on a small planet. I thought the Force had abandoned me, but out of every bad comes something good. That was the day..."

"The day?" She prompted.

"The day I met my wife."

"You mentioned her before."

"And I am not going to mention her again. End of subject."

"I don't mean to pry-"

"Bull. You do mean to pry. You may even mean well, but my private life is just that, private." She looked hurt at that. I sighed. "Danika, once you've lived as long as I have, you find that your past life is only a series of memories. Some are good, some very good, some bad, some really bad. If you're lucky most of them will be the good kind, but not everyone is lucky. Some of those memories will be so bad that you don't want to remember them, but you can't help it. If they're bad enough, you'll find some place where nothing reminds you of those memories, and if you're lucky, you will stay there forever."

"Kashyyyk?" She asked hesitantly.

"No... yeah... well... maybe. I doubt I could ever explain it to you even if I tried. It's something being old gives you in compensation for dealing with the young. Let me just ask this. Have you ever been in love? I mean really in love. Not just a crush or an infatuation?"

She looked down blushing.

"Exactly my point. You're at the beginning of your life, and I am near my end. I can guarantee that love will find you, maybe a lot of loves. Sorta like the common cold. But if you're lucky, you'll find love with a capital L at least once in your life. That makes everything worth living for.

"The Jedi masters tend to denigrate love. They are the most over-cautious bunch I have ever met in all my time. They want you to avoid love because of the emotional entanglements. Not that it _will_ drag you to the dark side, but that it _might_. Thankfully anyone capable of pouring water out of a boot without instructions printed on the heel figures that out eventually."

"I always thought that love can carry you beyond what you imagine, not drag you down."

"Could be. But what a lot of people call love isn't really. Passion, lust, that can cause anger jealousy and fear. But passion and lust aren't love. If they wanted to make sure you kids wouldn't fall, they teach you to control your passions, not your emotions. You're right. Love can save you from your own damnation."

I snorted, shaking my head. "Listen to me talk! I'm not even a Jedi, yet I think I can give advice like one!"

"Not a Jedi?" Her head cocked. "You mean not any more."

"Nope. I mean never really was. Oh I trained, even made it as far as Bastila has, but I was never really sure about what they taught. Does that surprise you?"

"But you have all the abilities of a Jedi-"

I sighed. "Sure, making me a 'Knight' would have been a foregone conclusion in the end. But I doubt the order would have gotten along with me any better by promoting me. Love isn't the only thing we disagree about. But love would have been the main sticking point.

"You see, Love does cause pain. Eventually love can lead to as much sorrow and regret as it does joy. I suppose there are eternal loves out there, but in all my life I have yet to see one. How you deal with love, and worse not getting love tells how much control the dark side has in your life." I looked away. "My wife Nayama learned to be a Jedi, with me teaching her. They had never accepted that we were married, or that I was even worthy to be teacher.

"They turned out to be right. She fell to the Dark side, and I fought and beat her. But she knew I still loved her. She taunted me, daring me to strike her down and finish my 'work', since I was such a lackluster teacher. But I did love her. I couldn't kill her. I returned to the order. Eventually someone else had to kill her when we fought Exar Kun, but a lot of Jedi died before she did."

I fell silent. "The council decided to reinstate me, and promote me to Padawan Teacher after I defeated her but refused to kill her. They assigned me to teach a very special class; how to coerce those who would not assist willingly. One thing I knew very well. But I was so angry at not being punished for my failure that I walked away from the order not long after you arrived." I looked at her face. "In fact I was one of those blamed after I had left for you going off to war. After all, someone had to be blamed."

She grinned, then grew pensive. "So even love doesn't work?"

"Oh it might. Depending on what kind of person it is. It takes a person with a great sense of self, and willing to work to make it happen, and more important, keep it happening. But I'll tell you one thing. Sometimes, no matter how hard you try, you and the one you love aren't meant to be together. The trick is to know when that is the case. Know when it's a time to fight for the one you love, or let them go."

I finished my drink. "There I go, waxing philosophical again. Somebody shoot me and put me out of everyone's misery!"

I stood, then stopped as she whispered. "I had an awful thought." She looked up. "Would the woman I had once been pretend to be good so they'd take me where I wanted to go?"

I looked at that worried face. "The Revan I knew might have done that. But she would have beaten all of us to a pulp the instant she was aboard just to prove she could do it. That's why Canderous had the entire ship wired to blow if you had even touched your lightsaber, and both Juhani and I were watching for you to try." I went to bed.

_Ebon Hawk_

Enroute to Yavin

Danika

_My mind floated down a massive stone walk, through the side of the great stone pyramid before me, and into a dark place. Guards stood at alert, ignoring me as I floated past them down the massive hall. I heard a scream, and made myself move faster. _

_ Bastila was bound to a stone altar. Standing over her, Malak reached out, and force lightning leaped from his hand again. It stopped, and she sagged. _

_ "I will never talk, Malak, why must this torture continue?" She gasped._

_ "Torture?" He sounded amused. "It isn't torture you face here, Bastila. It is just a taste of the dark side to whet your appetite." He reached out again, and she shuddered in agony. "All it takes for me to stop is for you to ask me. But this will continue my dear girl. When the time comes, you will swear yourself to the dark side willingly."_

_ "Never!"_

_ "Ah but I can feel you weakening even now." He purred. "The dark side is already within you, and soon you will embrace it like a lover."_

_ "Danika-" She pleaded._

_ "Don't speak her name!" Malak reached out and the lightning ripped her again. "She is the enemy of everything we stand for!" He struck her again and again-_

I clutched my chest, feeling the pain running through her. Bastila had felt me there at the last, and was now blocking me. I whimpered in sympathy. The technique is as old as the people who practice it. You torment someone, but always give them an opening to escape the torment. You deny them food and rest, torture them, until finally they accept what you want them to accept, step by hideous step. In the end they actively help you complete it.

Could she resist? No one really can. Even the strongest. Only death can free you and Malak would assure that she did not die.

I got up, dressed, poured two cups of tea, and headed for the cockpit. Carth was on watch, and he nodded to me as I handed him a drink, and sat in the copilot's seat. Before us were the swirling lights of hyperspace, one of the most beautiful sights someone can ever see.

"We'll be dropping out in a few minutes." Carth reported. "What's on your mind?"

"Bastila." I whispered. "Malak is tormenting her even now. But she has blocked me out of her mind. The bond is still there, I can almost point in the right direction. But she is not allowing anything to come down it."

He handed me a data pad with the star chart from our Nav computer on it. A new speck rested there, a blue water world. "That is our destination?"

"Yeah."

"I only want to stop long enough to assure that Suvam Tam is safe. Then the final leg of the voyage is before us."

He grunted. He reached out, adjusted the throttles, and suddenly we were in the Yavin system a few hours from the station. A ship hung nearby, a docking tube run to an airlock. "Who is that?"

"Wait a minute. Trandoshan design, one of their pocket frigates. About our size, better armed."

"Tam did mention that the Trandoshan visited occasionally."

"But why now?"

I shrugged. "I'll put together a team and find out."

When we landed Canderous and Zaalbar were with me. We went down the passage, each door opening on cue. In the viewing room Suvam had made his own, a confrontation was underway.

There were four Trandoshan, and they had backed him against a table. "...That's not good enough, Tam!" One was hissing. The face was out of a prehistoric nightmare for humans. A reptile, man height, with all of the teeth of a velociraptor and an attitude to match.

"You no just rewrite our agreement when you want to!' Tam protested. "Exchange not like it!"

"The Exchange is not in a position to dictate to us any more." The Trandoshan hissed. "Too busy fighting among themselves-" He saw us, and stiffened. "Who is that?" He looked at Suvam, and his claws clenched. "A stranger. You haven't been telling us everything, Tam."

"What you mean, tell everything? I no clear visitors through you!"

"It appears to me that you have overstayed your welcome." I purred. "I think it is time for you to leave."

"Or what?" The leader asked. "You will force us?"

"Or maybe I will ask you again; just less politely."

"You seek to mock us, human?"

"Seek? I have succeeded. You will leave. While alive or dumped into space after we kill you, but you will leave."

"No! Fighting in here damage valuable stuff!" Suvam raised his hands in horror.

"We will deal with you later, Tam. As for you, human, a time will come."

"Eventually, it comes for us all." I said. "You were just going I believe."

The Trandoshan walked to one of the other hatches, and left. I breathed a sigh of relief. "Are you all right?"

"That not end well. They impulsive violent race. They be back soon. In force." He shrugged. "Still I am in one piece. That is to the good."

"Yes it is." I cocked my head. "Assessment, Canderous?"

"As soon as we're gone, they'll be back."

"That's what I thought. Let's go back to the ship."

"We're leaving?"

"A little unfinished business, then we are."

A few minutes later, _Ebon Hawk _jumped into hyperspace. The Trandoshan ship slid away from the planet's magnetic pole, where it had been hiding from our sensors, and slid alongside the station. The boarding tube came across, and the crew of the ship boarded. The leader charged down the boarding ramp, and stopped as I turned in my seat. He motioned, and his crew spread to surround me.

"Where is Tam?" He demanded.

"Safe." I replied. "So there is no reason for you to be here."

"I said there would come a day, Human."

"As I said, for us all." I lifted the controller in my hand. If his eyes could have bugged out, they would have. Then the directional mines Canderous had assembled and installed fired. The only safe place in that hell was where I was sitting, and even there it was like being thrown into a wall. There was screaming, and I leaped into the middle of the carnage. There had been almost a dozen of them, but only three still stood, staggering from the shock wave. I dispatched them, then charged down the ramp onto their vessel. One guard stood at the door, but he went down before he even knew he was under attack. There was no one else aboard.

I lifted my com. "Carth?"

"Just coming back. Suvam is wailing about the damage you might have done."

"Couldn't be helped. Does he have a ship on the station?"

"Yeah, a little one man asteroid miner. He says he needs some parts..."

"Have Mission supply them if we can. I don't think he'll be wanting to stay."

"On it."

The repairs to Suvam's ship would have taken two days. We modified the controls of the Trandoshan ship so he could operate it alone and we loaded everything of value. He knew a port known for stripping ships for their parts, but where the Trandoshan were unwelcome. He had already communicated with them, and would have a sizable nest egg when he arrived. Before he left, he handed me a bundle of what felt like sticks. "Not need these. You Jedi; maybe you can use." He waved, and ran aboard the ship. I watched it boost away, then opened the bundle.

Lightsabers. An even half dozen. Two were doubles, and I looked at one critically. It looked like the descriptions of Exar Kun's lightsaber.

I went aboard the ship, and we went over our bounty. Among them was the Heart of the Force. I handed it off to Sasha to use. Using the additional focusing crystals, each of us was armed with the most powerful lightsabers we could have with our resources.

Canderous planted explosives, and we raced away from the station. Behind us, I watched it explode, gone in an instant.

"Carth, take us to the Star Forge." I ordered.

_Ebon Hawk_

Enroute to the Star Forge System

Danika

The next few days were tense. Everyone dealt with the tension in their own ways. Juhani, Jolee and I spent hours honing Sasha' growing skills, and spent others sparring. Canderous made small adjustments in his blaster rifle, Carth worked on piloting, Mission on figuring what we would need to get when we reached a new port. Zaalbar kept us fed and tinkered with the engine. I was constantly nagged by the fact that there had been nothing more from Bastila after she had shut me out days earlier. The bond still existed, so she was alive. But what had happened to her?

It was a relief when we came out at ten planetary diameters from a small planet.

"Not much to see." Carth said. "Are we sure this is the right place?"

I pointed wordlessly at the fleet that orbited the star, or rather, the structure above the star's North Pole. He stared at it, then used the passive sensors to bring up a larger picture. As I have said before, it was shaped not unlike a lightsaber pommel, only fatter. Over a hundred kilometers through, it was more than a five hundred in length.

"The Star Forge." Carth whispered. "I've never seen anything like it!"

"We're here, now we need to tell someone." I told him.

"Yeah, all right. I'm sending this directly to the fifth fleet. Admiral Dodonna will know what to do. Maybe a quick strike can cripple it."

"I don't know." I pointed at the dots of yet more ships coming around from the sensor shadow of the massive structure. "How many ships do they have here?"

Carth stared. "It looks like all of them." He added that to the message. "All right, the message is away. All we have to do is sit here outside their sensor range-" there was a bleep, and he snarled. "Fighters coming in fast. Get on the guns!"

I leaped up, running back to the centerline. Canderous passed me taking the ladder down as I climbed up. I was in my seat, weapons activated as the fighters came snarling in. _Ebon Hawk _was running toward the planet, trying to put it between the fleet and us. I blasted a fighter, spinning to find another as the ship started rocking as if it was going mad.

"Carth-"

"Some kind of disruptor field! Flight controls are burning out!"

The fighters lofted away from us, and I could understand why. The ship was tumbling out of control toward the planet.

"All hands brace for impact!" Carth screamed. "This might be a rough landing."

Watching a crash-landing is so much more fun if there is some distance between you and it. From where I sat the sky the sea and land were interchangeable, spinning past my view in a whirling vortex. Suddenly we leveled out, how I didn't know. Thrusters blasted, then we bounced on our landing gear. We came down again, oleo joints screaming in protest. Then there was silence.

"Well, we're down." Carth said. I unstrapped, and climbed down the ladder. The others were already gathering in the mess hall, and I collapsed into a seat.

"Hey, when you said rough, you were understating it! What happened, Carth? You been on a drinking binge while we weren't watching?" Mission asked.

"That disruptor field fried our stabilizers. We're lucky we made it down in one piece at all." He rubbed his scalp. "Unless we can fix them, we're stuck here. I can't guarantee what would happen if we took off without them."

"While we were descending, I think I saw ships that had crashed before us." I mused. "Perhaps they might have the parts we need?"

"So did I." Canderous said. "Some of them aren't that far away." He shook his head. "This place is a graveyard of ships from ten thousand years of history. Maybe more. There must be something we can use."

"Yeah. But even if we can repair the stabilizers, that disruptor field is still there. We'd just run into it again when we lift." Carth commented.

"I'm more worried about the fleet." I said. "The field seems to extend out from the planet, and is adjustable. If they turn it up while our fleet is in system, who knows what will happen!"

"But there has to be a way to shield from it." Carth mused. "The Sith fighters didn't seem to be affected. But we won't have time to find that way, so destroying or shutting it down is our best option."

I think T3 might have found it." Mission said. We crowded around the monitor she was using. A field emanated from the planet, running outward almost to the limit of the system itself. A staggering amount of energy.

"The field is coming from a structure not far from here."

"What about Bastila?" I asked.

"We haven't forgotten about her." Carth soothed. "But there isn't anything we can do until the field is down and the ship is repaired."

"I only hope we are not to late." Juhani whispered. "Bastila has been Malak's prisoner for more than a week. If he can turn her to the dark side, the fleet we have called is doomed!"

"Bastila won't turn to the dark side." I said, even as my heart told me otherwise.

"Like you once did, I fear that Bastila will feel the lure of the dark side." Jolee opined. "Can't you feel it? Like a smell in the air. Whoever these people were, they've lived and breathed the dark side their entire lives. She may be strong in the Force, but she is impulsive and prideful. Like you were once, Revan."

"Don't call me that!" I shook my head vehemently. "Revan is dead and buried. I am Danika now and forever."

"Hold on to that thought, girl. But remember that Bastila hasn't been through the same hell yet. If she still feels as you do, than all she needs is rescue."

"If Bastila is on the Star Forge, as you both seem to think, we can't rescue her until we're repaired and the field is down, Jolee." Carth shook his head, making a copy of the data from the sensors. "There are half a dozen wrecks close enough to check out. I've downloaded their positions and a list of what we need. Maybe one of them has what we need."

"I hope it's really that easy, Carth." Mission murmured.

"You and me both, Mission. All right, Zaalbar and I will start ripping out fried circuits. Mission and the droids will go through what we have, and see what still needs to be replaced. Danika, who will you take?"

"Jolee and Canderous." I said. "Juhani, can you help with the scanning?"

"Yes."

We gathered our equipment, and gathered at the ramp. I trotted down it, then stopped. I had seen this beach before...

_I could feel the blade slicing through Mission, watched her fall, heard Zaalbar's scream. _

"Danika?" Jolee was watching me, worried.

"I had a vision back at the Academy. Me, killing Mission and Zaalbar here. On this very spot." I whispered.

"Then you are close to the point where your choice will kill her or save her." Jolee replied. "I'm here, I hope I can stop you when that time comes."

"If anyone can." I whispered. I turned. Someone was running in the rock and stone above us.

Four figures came into sight. They were the same race as the builders. Their weapons were wood with sharp teeth or stone shards imbedded in them. They saw us, and seemed surprised for a moment, then they charged with an ululating cry.

Canderous smoothly aimed as if he were on a target range and three of them were dead before they reached us. The last died as I cut him down.

"What are they?" Canderous asked. "I've never seen such things.

"Murderous animals!" Someone said, and we spun. Two Duros staggered from the rocks near the side of our private beach, hands raised in supplication. "Thank you humans for saving us!"

"No problem." I said.

"If your arrival had not been so fortuitous, we would have been caught! They treat all that are not of their kind as food!"

"What are you doing here?" I asked.

"Our mining survey ship crashed here months ago. Our ship sank out there, at sea. Of our crew, only ten survived. We have been hunted and attacked by them ever since our arrival. Some said they would swim to that small island there." He waved at the horizon. Unless they could swam better than any Duros I have ever seen, they were dead.

"They have been attacking you?"

"Yes. They are vicious, hunting us using the Rancor they have tamed. If we are caught, we end up in their stew pots."

"Are there other survivors? from other ships?"

"Many, a hundred, maybe more. Most live by running from these monsters. Only the Mandalorians are safe from them."

"Mandalorians?" Canderous asked. "Where are they? How many?"

"A dozen warriors all told, we think." One of the Duros said. "They have a lot of their technology remaining. Camouflage uniforms, and mines. They are camped in a valley on the other side of the Temple mount."

"Danika?" Canderous asked.

"Yes, I think we might be able to use some allies. Shall we go?"

"No, I will go alone." He demurred. "That will stop the foolish among them from shooting first."

"We cannot stay." The Duros said. "The longer we stay in one place, the more likely they will find us."

"Wait." I lifted my com and gave an order. A few moments later, Carth pushed a lifter down the ramp. On it was an inflatable raft, and about four days worth of E rations. The Duros were stunned by our generosity, but once they had the raft, they couldn't get into it and away from shore fast enough. I had Juhani join us to replace Canderous, and started up the slope into the depths of the island.

There was a path cutting to the left, and I ignored it. I knew somehow that the enemy the Duros were worried about lived that way. Instead I took the switchback climbing up the scree, and soon we could look down on the beach. The intruder lights were on, and the turrets were hot. I found another cut in the rock, and we followed it. Ahead of us, I could hear something roaring.


	28. Temple

Unknown planet

Canderous

I went back aboard as Danika led the others up the hill. I went to the cargo bay which I had made my home, and gathered some things. A set of camouflage coveralls with hood. My armor was gone, and I wished I had it now. Mandalorians are more into appearances than others might think. I was going to contact my people, and I looked like a ragamuffin. No help for it.

I came down the ramp, then started up the same hill at a jog. The valley with the temple was up from the beach, and I ignored the path that led to the left. Ahead of me I could hear roaring, and switched on the pattern adapter as I breasted the hill. Half a dozen of the aliens assisted by two Rancor were attacking Danika and her team. I ran toward them, but by the time I reached there, Danika was gone, only the bodies of those that had stood before her remained.

The path opened into a lush valley with a huge pyramid in its center. I heard roaring, and saw a pair Rancor shambling through the remains of pillars and other structures. I went across past the temple, invisible thanks to the camo pattern adapter, and found a path leading down the other side. I trod down it slowly, silent and invisible. Ahead of me I could see a series of mines. I stopped, and examined them. Standard layout. I slipped through the gap that should have been there and moved farther.

I came upon the encampment, and my throat tightened. A dozen was right, if you counted the women, which we do. Only five were men of warrior age and three women. The other 'warriors' were between eight and ten years old. A dozen or more much younger children were busy at their training or doing the menial jobs necessary. I hefted a rock, and flung it down to fall near the fire. All of the men and three of the women leaped for weapons, spinning to face up the

slope. I shut down the field.

"Who leads?" I roared.

One of the men stepped forward. "Makiel Suuchin of Clan Lembat!" He shouted. "Who attacks?"

"I do not attack. I come to talk!"

"Then who comes to talk?" He asked.

"Canderous Ordo of clan Ordo." I replied.

"Canderous Ordo is dead! He died at Malchior V!"

"I stand before you and can prove my name." I retorted. "Where were you when Malchior V was fought!"

"Aboard _Dhalgiri_!" He replied.

"The command of Soontal Ordo of clan Ordo." I said. "Son of my Daughter Chandra."

"No more. He was badly wounded, and ordered us to jump out on a blind course."

"The fool!" I shook my head at the daring of it. A blind course is just that. You put a pin in a map of the Galaxy, and went whatever direction fate took you in hyperspace. They could have all died our there. Instead... "Soontal is dead?" It wasn't really a question. He would have been trading embraces with me if he lived.

"In the crash." Makiel replied. "Along with almost all of us."

"May I come down?"

"Yes, and welcome, father by marriage of our captain."

I moved down the hill, and they gathered around me. The children were well behaved, only one reached out to finger my clothing, and he dropped his hand without being told. I moved to the fire, standing with my people for the first time.

"We only arrived here a short while ago." I told them.

"More Mando'a?" Someone asked. "Does the war go on?"

"No. The war has been over for many years. But a new war has begun, and we can have a part in it."

"Says who?" One spoke. "I am Konrad Morgo of clan Shoomart. Those we have hunted of the Galaxy told us that Manda'lor is dead."

"But there is a new Manda'lor." I told them. "Revan defeated Manda'lor, and assumed his place."

"So what?" He shrugged. "We have heard some of the war you speak. Revan is dead."

"She is not dead." I snapped. "She is here, and she sent me."

"To do what?"

"That is for her to say. "

Unknown planet

Danika

We reached the temple mount after a sharp battle. I ran toward the building, but felt something pushing me back.

"A force field of some kind." Jolee grunted. I agreed. Suddenly;

_ I stood before the temple. The secret to escape from this world, to the huge structure in space was here. The _Costigain Rift _lay out in the sea, brought down by the disruptor field emanating from this very building._

_ "Perhaps the natives?" Malak asked. _

_ I nodded my agreement. "The one that calls himself the One is mad. While he might help us, do you trust him?"_

_ "Never, Revan."_

_ "Then perhaps we should speak with these Elders he spoke of." I pointed. "That way."_

I turned. "That way." The others merely nodded. We crossed the open area, and went down another path. Where it turned, was what looked like a small ship. I scanned it. "Corellian Class A204. It's on Carth's list." I started to walk forward but Jolee stopped me. A small animal hopped from the underbrush. "Gizka. Nasty little buggers."

"It doesn't look dangerous." I said.

"They aren't. But they breed like mad. Something here must feed on them or we'd be hip deep already."

An instant later, the animal was blown apart by a hidden mine. We stared at the gobbets of flesh that were all that remained.

"Well that would fix the problem." Jolee said.

It took us some time to get into the ship. Mines had been placed on every entryway and we had to disarm them as we worked our way into it. The parts we needed were easy to find once we did. Less than twenty minutes all told. We worked our way back out of the ship, then fumbled our way across the clearing to the path leading onward. We finally reached the beach an hour before sunset. A structure stood before us.

Pillars ran across the face of it, and energy flowed between them. A set of pillars stood away from the others, with an obvious path between them. I stepped into the area, and a hologram appeared. One of the aliens that made this world their home looked at me.

"You are not Rakata. What is your business with the Elders, off-worlder?"

A voice asked. I understood it!

"Who are you?"

"I am not a lifeform. I am a monitoring system that protects the Elders from attack. I repeat, you are not Rakata. State your purpose or be destroyed." A bolt of energy ran between the posts behind us.

"I come seeking entry into the Star Forge."

"Hold pattern matching employed. You are Revan."

"Was. No longer."

"Your answer makes no sense. But the Elders wish to speak with you. You may enter." The energy behind us guttered out, and before us the pathway opened.

Elders

Danika

The door opened before us soundlessly. Whatever else they had lost, the aliens, these Rakata, had not lost that! We walked into the courtyard, facing three of the Elders. The center one of the trio spoke.

"We of the Elder's council did not expect to see you again Revan. We had thought that you had betrayed us. Why have you returned to our village after all this time?"

I stopped. "I am not Revan, any more. I am called Danika Wordweaver now."

"This answer makes no sense. Our sensors and our eyes recognize you. You are the one called Revan. You are the very one that came here before with your servant, Malak. You promised to help us. In exchange for our aid, you promised to destroy the ancient evil of our race that orbits our star. Are you saying that this promise has no meaning to you?"

"My mind was destroyed. Almost all memories I have of your world have been lost."

They huddled to talk quietly. "This explains the differences in the way you were and the way you are now. You are not as you once were. Perhaps you speak the truth, and all memory has been lost. Yet that power which you wield, what you call the Force, is still there. You can still help us, if we are willing to trust you yet again."

"It would help if I knew what I had promised when my body stood here last."

"If what you say is true, that you cannot remember your last visit here, than you must have a number of questions. Ask what you will, and we will try to help you understand."

"You can tell me who you are first."

"We are called the Elders. Our ancestors were priests and scientists among our people, serving the Infinite Empire before it collapsed almost 30,000 odd of your years ago. As I said, you arrived here four of your years ago with your servant Malak. Your great ship was dragged from orbit as ships have been destroyed since the fall of the Empire. Both of you survived that crash with a handful of others, though you were then trapped on our world. In your search for a way to escape you found our enclave as you have again.

"You used the Force to draw the language of the Rakata from our minds, and impressed the language you call Basic on ours to allow us to help you in that escape. You convinced us to aid you in entering the temple of the Ancients. Both you and Malak entered after promising to destroy the weapon that floats in space.

"Yet after all this time you have returned. The evil still exists, for we can feel it."

"Have a lot of ships crashed here?"

"The disruptor field was a defense of last resort created by the Ancients to protect our home world from attack. Most die when their ships crash, but some survive, as do the creatures you call Rancor and Gizka. The Rancor have been captured when young, and are used by the warlike tribes of the island to attack others."

"Tell me more of your people."

"There are hundreds of thousands of our people upon this world. But except for this one enclave, they are fierce warlike primitives or the slaves of the warrior class. When our world was bombarded, our people hid in shelters beneath the surface for thousands of years. Finally some began seeking the surface again. But those that come to the surface late find that they are under attack by their own kind.

"Our society was rigidly stratified, and each shelter was for one order only. As I said, we were priests and scientists. Others, such as those that follow the One were warriors in their tribe, and still remain so." He looked sad. "Since the One became their leader, attacks by his followers have increased. We have technology, which he does not, and that is all that has saved us. The fool thinks that what we know is magical and easily used. We control much that is still more advanced than you might imagine. We controlled access to the temple, which is still a storehouse of knowledge if we could enter it again.

"But that is lost to us. When the civil wars began, warlords unleashed horrors unimaginable. Plagues weapons of mass destruction, Droids capable of thinking and fighting on their own. Our race even here on our home world was driven almost to extinction. To stop it from happening again, the knowledge of those weapon were locked within the temple, and sealed so that only we could enter it.

"But something inconceivable happened. It is believed that one of the plagues that were spread during those wars denied our race the use of the Force. Once we had such a control over it that we built machines now gone with the Force as part of their construction. Metals that cannot exist in nature we made as a matter of course.

"But without the Force we could not enter the temple. That is why we helped you when you came before. You could enter the temple, where we cannot. It has been determined by the best of our scientists that when the great evil above is gone, we can again learn the use of the Force."

"Can you help me again?"

"We trusted you once before to our detriment, Revan. You betrayed our trust. It is true that one like you can enter the Temple where we cannot, but how can you expect us to trust you again?"

"I am a servant of the light now." I whispered. "I must make amends for the evil that I have done."

"You claimed the same when you were here before. Claimed that your purpose would require the destruction of the evil above. You claim to not remember, but you follow the same path as before. You have crashed again. You have come to us asking help, again. You promise to remove the evil, again. How can we trust you?"

"I have said I am not the one that came before." I touched my head. "My mind is a blank slate when it comes to your world. Only my actions can prove I speak the truth."

"Words are easy to speak, and hard to prove. It is the actions that judge the person. You must prove to us that you are not what you once were."

"How may I prove this?"

"The One has become a serious problem. He has dismounted guns from some of the ships, and has tried to move them here to destroy us. While our defenses can stop their hand weapons, they cannot stand against that much firepower. A team of scouts had gone out to find where he has hidden these weapons, but they were captured. There is only one of them remaining alive." He chuckled. "We have our own spies among them, and while he cannot help in an escape, he has reported what horrors the One has inflicted on our people.

"We ask that you rescue this one of ours."

"I can negotiate with the One for his release."

"Would that your luck be better than ours. All we have sent to talk before have ended up dead for thirty of your years. If it can be done without bloodshed, we would accept it. If he would be willing to have it so."

"So I must save this one."

"Risking your life for one you do not actually now is supposed to be what your kind strive for." He said gently. "Or so you once told me."

"Then at least I told you the truth once!" I said. "We will get him back."

"Go with this Force."

We went out into the early evening darkness. I led the others back up the path, threading through the mines that still lay there. The temple beckoned, but I ignored it without the aid of the Rakata, I could not enter.

I signaled for a halt, and waited.

"Why..." Jolee stopped. Around us Mandalorian warriors appeared from their camouflage fields. Ten of them. Then Canderous appeared from his field. He walked over, and knelt.

"My Manda'lor, I have brought them as you commanded."

"Well done." I said. "Do any challenge my orders?"

One walked forward. "I am Konrad Morgo of clan Shoomart. I do not challenge your right, merely your purpose."

"Speak on, Konrad." I nodded.

"To what purpose do we fight and die for you here? Have we not fought and died for nothing under other Manda'lor before you?" There was a gasp from the gathered warriors. Unless he was willing to challenge me directly, which he had refused to do, this was tantamount to a mutiny. Under their own laws, I could have killed him where he stood.

"I took your honor from your clans because of those acts." I replied. "In time, it would have been redeemed. But I died and was reborn. I know the honor of the Mando'a." I motioned toward Canderous. "This one took the burden of shame for his clan because of another. No one told him to do so, he did what honor demanded. Will you do the same?"

Konrad lowered his head. "Others have made that claim since you disappeared."

"Were they Manda'lor of Manda'lor?" I asked sharply.

"No." Again petty defiance. By refusing to use the title, he was questioning it.

"I swear to you. Within days the Mando'a will either regain their honor as a people, or lose it forever. As Manda'lor I can do this."

"Yes." His head bowed, and his answer was a whisper. Unless overturned by another, the dictates of the Manda'lor was absolute. In the millennia since they had been formed, only three times had it been overturned.

"Konrad, evil floats over this world. It is in the great space station around the star, in the ships that guard it. Hundreds of ships. We," I motioned toward Canderous, toward the two silent Jedi behind me, "And others in our ship will face them when our ship is ready to fight again. We will fight, and we will win or die."

"Against such a force all you can do is die." He looked at me, and his face glowed. "But with us, you will die well."

"Agreed."

He fell to his knee. "_Chu_, my Manda'lor!"

The others dropped to their knees.

"My people, there is much we must do..."

The One

Danika

The next morning, we moved down the hill to the ship, delivering the parts we had found. Carth promised to have them installed and ready within the day, and I led Canderous and Jolee toward the other path leading to the One. Canderous carried the small box which we had gotten on Korriban, and I considered what I intended to do. According to the Mando'a, the One had several dozen warriors. This would not be an easy fight we faced.

The path led onto a small beach, and ahead of us were a dozen Rakata and a pair of Rancor. When they saw us, the Rakata formed a skirmish line, the two Rancor at the ends. It spoke of some experience with the large beasts. If we fought, the Rancor would charge in from the sides, breaking any formation a party might try. If enough strength went to the wings of the formation, the Rakata could cut through the middle.

They halted five paces away. "You have been to the Elder encampment! You must die, as the One has ordered!"

"I come with a gift for the One." I motioned, and Canderous set the box down beside me, stepping back. His blaster was aimed at the Rancor to our left.

They paused, and the leader of the Rakata considered what I had said. "You have been here before, creature. Why should the One agree when you have betrayed his trust before?"

"I was injured, and have lost all memory of having met him." I admitted. "Do you punish those that fail without knowing why?"

"Sometimes we punish them merely because we wish to." The officer admitted.

"Then take us to the One and let him decide."

Again the pause. "Bring them." He ordered. We moved toward the building the One's people occupied. Behind us the Rancor snuffled curiously, but followed their trainers when commanded. I breathed a silent sigh of relief.

The doors had to be opened manually. If my plan succeeded, the Rakata would begin their long climb to civilization again. If it failed, I would die. But the _Ebon Hawk _would be free to fly again.

The One's encampment was larger than the Elders, and one section looked to be an arena. A walkway crossed it with heavy gates installed so that once you were on it, you could not retreat. Tiered seats would allow the Rakata to watch as warriors were forced to battle over a man made lake full of what looked like vicious predatory fish. Both gates stood open today, and we walked across, surrounded by our guards. The Rancor kept trying to pull to the rear, but their handlers prodded them to follow us instead.

Beyond the arena was another huge area with cages. Each cage held a Rancor. No, all but one. In that one stakes had been pounded into the earth, and bodies hung from them. The scouts the Elders had spoken of.

A large Rakata stood there, and I could feel the Force flowing over him. It was a dark presence. An evil steeped from the ground itself that fed it.

"I said they were to die!" He screamed.

"My lord, she claims that she has no memory of your previous meeting." The officer reported.

"Lies, all lies!" He screamed.

"She also bears a gift." He added.

"A gift?" The One looked at me. "What kind of gift?"

I held the box, advancing toward him. "A gift from the past of your race. One that was made before the Infinite Empire fell." I said, setting it down. "And a message from that time."

He looked at me, then at the box. I could feel his lust for it warring with his caution. He waved me away, storming forward to pick it up. A finger touched

the tip of the pintel, then he froze as if stunned.

"Now!" My team went into a triangular formation, facing outward. Our guards moved forward, but paused at a whistle. The Mando'a came out of camo fields, surrounding those that faced us.

"Betrayer!" The officer screamed.

"Wait." I said. "Give this a few minutes before you attack, or he," I motioned toward the still body of the One, "Is who I will kill first."

The threat held them in place. As we stood there, a pair of the Mando'a ran to the gate on this end of the walkway, and closed it. Beyond that other Rakata were gathering.

The standoff continued, and I began to worry. It had taken only a few minutes from the time I was ensnared to my release according to Carth. How many was a few?

Behind me I heard a gasp, and looked at the One. The box was in his hand still, and he gently put it down. "As promised." He said. He looked at the guards standing around us. "Stand down." He ordered.

I could see that the Force around him had changed. It was still dark, but not as much as before. He was looking at his hands in wonder, then at us. "You have freed me as promised. Why?"

"This is your home world, and these are some of your people." I said. "Would you join with them and others to make things right again?"

"I have a chance to fix what I helped cause?" He clapped his hands. "Tell me more."

I told him of the Elders, and of the people that followed the One. He listened intently. "So these have little or no military force of their own, and almost no access to our computers, is that what you say?"

"Yes."

"Then maybe they need someone that can help them in that regard. You." He pointed at the officer. "Take the wounded Elder Scout to the Elders. Ask to be admitted, and tell them that I shall come and make an alliance with them. I will come with this one directly." He motioned toward me, "Go."

Three Rakata ran to the cage holding the living scout, and carried him away.

"Makiel!" I shouted.

"_Chu_!"

"You will stay here for a time. Assist this one in consolidating his power. They have guns taken from downed ships. Place them in defense."

"_Chu_!" Half of the Mando'a came up, saluted the Rakata, and took positions around him as bodyguards. The Rakata watched them warily.

"You know how fierce these warriors are. They will be among you until your leader says otherwise." I ordered them. "Treat them as you have others, and you will die. You must learn to join civilized peoples again, and they will teach you." I turned to the person occupying the One's body. "We will escort you to the Elders now."

"My thanks for my rescue and another chance. May I know your name?"

"I am called Danika Wordweaver."

"I was called Brashieel and shall be again." He extended a hand, palm upright toward me. I placed my hand against his. "I promise to be worthy of that chance. And your trust."

Elders

Jolee

We entered the Elder's encampment, and Brashieel bowed to them. They spoke too rapidly for me to follow, and Danika merely stood there. Finally Brashieel stepped aside.

"You have done as we asked, and brought this one from our past to aid us. Our scout has told us of the way you freed him, and this alliance will help us convince other small tribes to join in rebuilding our society. We are in your debt."

"Will you help me enter the temple then?" Danika asked.

"Rescuing us our person proves that you have not changed in your heart, Revan. You have lied to us before. Can we trust you with such power yet again?" He looked to the other Elders. "We must discuss this in private. When we are done, we shall summon you. Please feel free to look over our people and our works."

The Elders walked away. Brashieel walked over to stand with us. "Like all politicians and priests they must talk until they are tired of it. During our conversation, they told me that there is one computer they can still use. Would you see it?"

"Please."

The Rakata led them through a bewildering array of rooms. There weren't many of the Elders to be seen, and I understood how relieved they were that this war was over. In one room, a researcher named Ll'awa was still trying to discover what within them caused the Force to dissipate. He was ecstatic when Danika informed him that Brashieel's body could use the Force.

"We have tried to create methods of bringing out the Force in our people. But our knowledge is still limited. It is said that the main computer within the Temple has more data on our DNA than any we have yet accessed, but that might be a myth. Please." He turned to Brashieel, "Could we have samples to test?

"I have promised to take these ones to the computer room." Brashieel demurred.

"I will have someone lead them for you." Ll'awa said, signaling an assistant. The young Rakata led us into the depths of the encampment, stopping at a door where a single Rakata knelt in meditation.

"This is Keeper Orsaa. He will assist you." Our guide motioned toward the other Rakata, and left again.

Orsaa looked up. "Well met yet again, Revan. I am glad that you have returned. He stood, towering over us. "I could not believe that you had betrayed us, regardless of what the council decided. I am the keeper of our history and the sole computer that remains for our use. When you were here last, you had many questions for me. I have heard of the destruction of your memories, but I hope some of what we spoke of remains?"

Danika shook her head. "I wish I could remember."

Orsaa chuckled. "There is no need to apologize. While it pains me that all I have taught you is gone, I am an old being, and old beings enjoy repeating themselves."

Danika snorted trying to keep from laughing, her eyes moving toward me. "So I have discovered. I do have questions yet again for you."

"Yes, or course. You must forgive me if what I tell you suddenly seems familiar. We discussed the history of my people at great length when you were last here. I will endeavor to enlighten you in any way I can."

"Tell me of the beginnings of the Rakata Empire."

"Long ago, we discovered that we could combine both what you call the Force, and material objects into a single object. We made great weapons and buildings such as the temple that rests beyond. We soon grew bored with seeing the same stars, and the same planet, and created ships of metal and Force combined, with what you would call hyper drives that fed upon the Force itself. We went outward from our world. Everywhere we went we found other more primitive societies. But instead of helping them advance, teaching them what we knew, those early Rakata decided instead to conquer them. Those we did not destroy became our slaves.

"Back then, we commanded the Force as easily as you command metals now. Something we never learned, because the Force was in abundance. Combined with our technology, and our great temple, we were irresistible. Soon we spread across this galaxy, and we called our works the Infinite Empire in our hubris.

"But it was discovered in the fourteenth millennia of our empire that our children had become weaker in the Force, and some were unable to feel it at all. Instead of understanding this warning, we taught ourselves how to make the hyper drives and engines that ran our ships in a more mundane manner. Yet that first weakening in our grasp of the Force became the first sign of our collapse."

"How did the Empire collapse"?

"We were a corrupt people, using our powers and technology to smash those that opposed us. How, some reasoned, were we different if another Rakata had something you needed? Some began treating other Rakata as we had the so-called lesser races. But in corruption you find greed and honor in equal measure. Those that strove to hold the Empire together, and those that feared that the Force would vanish for all time, and would grab for what they could at whatever cost. Natural opponents.

"Our Empire was built on slaughter and slavery. We began using the same means upon ourselves. It began to collapse as our own people fought for what they wanted. Plagues sprouted up, and each plague seemed to weaken our hold on the Force just that much more. As we weakened our slaves began to revolt. Our weapons devastated planets in an attempt to halt this. You told me before of a planet named Tatooine where our ships still lie. This was one such.

"Here on our own hidden home world the fighting between rival factions escalated. Warlords fought to control all, and succeeded only in our own slaughter. Many are the weapon designs were taken and placed in the Temple so only the priests could gain it, but always there were more. Biological weapons were released, nuclear and anti-matter fire devoured cities. Only those that had hidden themselves had even a remote chance of survival. Our empire collapsed into ruins in less than a century. The glory of what we called Infinite lies only in rust, dust, and bones.

"Then came the fleets captured by those we had oppressed, come to repay us in kind, or slaughter those that remained. The greatest of all our priests, L'Wass entered the temple, and a great scream came from it. Then the ships fell like stars from the sky, crashing everywhere. But it cost him to use the Force that last time. He staggered from the temple, and died. But those still here fought until our society collapsed as well.

"Since then ships have crashed here as other peoples beyond our star rediscovered us. Finally you came, and filled us with hope." He looked sad. "Now if you could just free us from this great prison."

"I will do what I can." Danika replied softly. "Now, I was told you still had a computer?"

"Of course, you have forgotten that as well." He turned, and opened the door that he knelt before. Beyond was a small room. "Enter."

The console was dark with age. Danika paced toward it, standing before the system. She hunted for a moment, then touched a control.

"User verification." He turned around. Before us stood a small hologram about a meter tall of a Rakata. "Species is not Rakata. Access to auxiliary archives not permitted for slave races. Restricted only to Rakata and approved servants."

"I come in the name of the Rakata people." Danika said. Then she spoke in their language. The machine replied in kind. "You have been programmed with the Basic language." She said. "Use it for those with me."

"Order accepted. Downloading information on access to the temple as requested. However only Rakata can so access the temple. While you speak the language, the intonation and timbre is incorrect."

"Understood." She handed me a data pad. "Access data files."

"Accessing. State topic of interest."

"I am looking for secrets of the Ancient Rakata."

"Accessing. Retrieval complete. All such information is held within the Temple itself. There are only synopses in this system. Access to the main temple was cut during the siege of the planet over 28,000 years ago."

"How do I enter the temple?"

"As stated, a Rakata must speak the codes necessary. The force field around the temple will stop any attempt to enter it without authorized access. Anyone within the temple can shut the field down, but from without, the codes must be used. This was to assure that renegades would not use the data within the computer inside. The code is a ritualistic chant in an ancient poetical meter. This is detailed in full in the book held by the Keeper of Knowledge."

"Tell me of the Star Forge."

"Error, no such data is within this system."

She shook her head. "Tell me of the Ancient Rakata. Historical overview."

"Accessing. Retrieval complete." A glowing ball similar to one of the Star Maps glowed in mid air. "The Infinite Empire covered the Galaxy, and at it's height consisted of 500 planets, ten billion Rakata, and over a trillion slaves. However corruption set in, and the Empire was weakened by a series of civil wars. Before the first of these Civil Wars, the first mutation of a great plague struck the Rakata."

"Wait, the Rakata say that there were a series of plagues."

"It would be more correct to say mutations of a specific virus. Just as your race speaks of a 'common' cold that strikes even those that suffered it before."

"Where did you get that analogy?"

"From the one called Revan who accessed this system five years before."

"Continue."

"The origins of the plague are unknown. Perhaps it was a naturally occurring virus of one of the planets conquered during the expansion. Possibly it was created by one of the slave races. It has even been suggested that the Rakata themselves made it as a weapon. It killed only Rakata, and those that were infected and did not die discovered that they could no longer access what you call the Force, and this lack of ability was passed on to their progeny. Carried by their own ships, it spread to every corner of the Empire before it was stopped.

"The Empire began to collapse, slowed by creating technology that could mimic what their original ships could do. But as slave revolts tore through the Empire, the Race retreated back here to their home world. However even here they were not safe. Millions died in the civil wars that struck them, more died as the plague mutated to strike the race again and again.

"That history ended over 28,000 years ago. Now my creators have devolved into scattered primitive tribes that still fight each other to gather what they need to survive."

"So sad." She whispered. "If they had tried to do good-"

"They would have still had civil wars." I said. "Look at the Galaxy now. The Sith and the Mandalorians could have been members of the Republic. But instead they fight to conquer. The nature of most species hasn't changed."

She nodded sadly. A Rakata came running up. "The Elders ask for your presence."

Danika

We stood before the Elders again. Their leader motioned for us to approach. "Revan, the Council had decided that your actions merit another chance. For many centuries we have tried to discover a way into the Temple, and by so doing, a means to destroy the Star Forge. But only those that command the Force, such as you are capable of passing through the screen. As you no doubt know, our people no longer have that ability. That is why we were willing to help you the last time.

"But you cannot enter the temple without our assistance. The ancient ritual for entering must be spoken by one of our people, and only with it can your own capabilities allow you to pass the screen. We need you as much as you need us in this, Revan."

"So it appears we must trust one another to do their part."

"For our sake, and the sake of the Galaxy, we hope you really mean to atone for your past evils. When you are ready, you may go to the temple, and our Keeper of knowledge will begin the ritual.

"However, it is our belief that allowing both you and Malak to pass through was a grave error on our part. It was a violation of our traditions, and we will return to them. If you enter the temple, you must go alone."

"You believe that it was letting two in instead of one that caused all of the suffering that followed?"

"We believe that you truly wish to end our suffering this time. But we will not take a chance by defiling the temple and our ancient rite yet again. If you enter, you must go alone."

"I will return to the ship, leaving my friends, and return to the temple at dawn." I replied. I led Canderous and Jolee to the ship in silence. I was terrified of what I might discover in there. Somewhere between this moment and when I stepped off the deck of the Star Forge to return to Korriban and enlist the Sith I had fallen to the darkness. Could I hold myself from doing so again?

Our dinner was tomb like. No one wished to break my mood, and I found I could not break it either. The only interruption was when our sensors reported that a fighter had flown down to land inside the temple. I wondered about that. If the screen was impenetrable, how had that ship flown into it?

My dreams were chaotic. I found myself moving through the temple. I could see the hallway, which led to where Bastila had been tortured, yet, the altar stone she had been bound to was empty now. I feared that she had died, but knew through the bond, that she had not. She still refused me admittance.

I was glad that the sun finally rose. I would finish this as quickly as I could, the better to end the matter once and for all. I tousled Sasha's hair, hugged Mission, and started up the path toward the temple. I was free at last. Free to live or die by my own strengths.

Keeper Orsaa stood at the bottom of the ramp, as close as you could get without impinging on the screen.

"The time has come to atone for your past, Revan." Orsaa intoned. "But the task will be greater than you had before. The temple is now home to a number of what you call dark Jedi and their metal servants."

"Dark Jedi?" I stared at the building. "How did they get in there?"

"The last time you and Malak entered, you must have found a control that causes the screen to be raised and lowered. Those within can lower and raise it at will to allow other force users entry. Did you not feel it last night?"

"The fighter."

"Even so. But that ability will not stop us from opening the screen for you to pass. It will take several hours. The chant is very complex."

"Wait." One of the Rakata with him pointed down the concourse toward where the path to the ship was. "Someone is coming!"

I saw two figures, and as they approached, they resolved themselves into Jolee and Juhani. I looked at Orsaa beseechingly, then walked toward them.

"You can't enter the temple alone!" Jolee shouted.

"Friends, I must!" I motioned for them to move closer to Orsaa so he could follow the conversation.

"We have had a premonition." Juhani said. "There is great danger, and here is where you will fall this time. We cannot let you go on alone!"

"You might be facing a trap." Jolee cut in. "Maybe Malak is waiting for you to come in himself! Even if he is not, we sense a number of Dark Jedi within. Enough that they can bury you in numbers if you are not careful."

"No one may enter with her." Orsaa growled. "She was told this, and you dark one were there when she was told!"

Jolee walked over to face the Rakata. "The fate of the Galaxy, of everyone on this planet depends on her succeeding. Would you be happy if tradition made us stay outside and she died or returned as the dark lord again? Will future generations applaud your blind adherence if it meant their own lives were as brutal as your own?"

"I will not leave this place!" Juhani said. "If you go in alone, all the good you have done will be swept away in a burst of emotion. The vision you had of Mission dying will occur, and we will have already died by your hand."

I stared at her. That vision had haunted me since Dantooine. To know that I would kill a girl I loved shocked me. That two of my friends would already be dead by my hand when that happened worried me even more. "Orsaa!'

"No! We cannot break tradition a second time!"

Jolee stepped forward. "There is a fleet coming that will be attacking the Star Forge in the next day or so. If we are standing here arguing when it arrives that disruptor field will destroy them. Will you murder the only hope of the galaxy for tradition?"

"My friends would not lie to you of this." I told Orsaa. "They say that I will fail if I go alone. I trust their judgment in this. If I must have help to succeed, they must come with me."

Orsaa looked at them for a long moment, then he signaled the other Guardians to join him and the chant began again.

"It looks like this might take a while."

"That is what they told me."

They hadn't been joking. The sun had passed zenith by at least an hour before Orsaa motioned. I trotted forward, and felt as if I pushed through a beaded curtain. On the other side the air was heavy with the Force, the evil flowing from the building darkening every step.

We ran up the ramp, and I touched the main door. It opened smoothly. The instant I saw it, the interior was familiar. Beyond it was a hallway running both directions. To our front and a few meters to our right was the door I knew led to the upper level where the control for the force field and disruptor lay. But it resisted my hand. I cursed, wanting to cut the door, but knew that it was thick enough that no lightsaber would even reach the inner face of it.

"Something is wrong." I explained that the door should have opened at my approach. They looked at the door.

"Perhaps the changes between Revan and Danika are more profound than you imagine." Juhani said. "It no longer recognizes you."

"Then I have to go to the lower level." I said. "The main computer is there."

We ran down the hall. I stopped the others, and looked around the corner. Three heavy combat droids crouched there. I motioned back to a door we had passed, and touched the key plate. The door opened, and the Jedi standing within spun. "Who dares intrude..." He saw my face, and sneered. "The fallen one, Revan."

"I am Revan no longer."

"So my Lord Malak has told all of us within the Force. He spoke of you. How the Jedi council stripped you of your identity and your skills, leaving you a shell of what you once where. You are not worthy of calling yourself a Dark Lord, or even a Jedi! You should thank me for killing you."

He started forward, and I smiled. His light saber lit, and I threw my own. It shot past him as he ducked then circled back, decapitating him from behind. I caught the handle in mid air, twirling it with my fingers.

"I wish they would give me the time to teach all of them that they are wrong before killing them." I ducked my head blushing at Jolee's look. "I will try to behave Jolee."

"See that you do."

I went to a flower-shaped computer console. I touched the controls, then shut down all alarms, droids, and unlocked all the doors. A signal chimed on the console, but I ignored it, leading us rapidly to another door.

It opened, and a Dark Jedi stormed through. He saw me, and his lightsaber lit. "Revan as I live and breathe!" He flourished his weapon. "About time I had a real challenge. Come along, let's dance, Revan, and don't bore me!"

I signaled the others to stand back, and lit the double lightsaber I carried. His first rush brought us breast to breast, and he leaped back as I slit his cheek with a _Fybylka_ cut. He flinched, touching the burn. Then he came in more carefully. He cut at my feet, and I leaped, blocking the strike he made over his head, and landing behind him. My foot shot out, and I felt his knee snap. He went down, rolling, but I clipped his lightsaber at the base, and the blade fizzled and died.

He screamed reaching out, catching a statue, and I felt it shifting. As it began to fall toward us I reached out, catching it, and holding the tons of rock over him.

"I don't want to kill you." I gritted out.

He laughed, and I saw the pistol in his hand. I blocked the bolt with a piece of rock from the floor, but I lost control of the statue, rolling it toward him. He caught it, but it was too much too fast. There wasn't even a scream.

I sighed, and led the others to the path downward. We ran into the lower level, coming to a series of metallic squares set in the floor. I remembered the pattern, running along them one way then another. The door opened, and I ran up to the computer console.

When I touched it, a voice spoke. "Greetings, Revan. It has been some time since you have accessed this terminal. I had considered the possibility that you had died, especially considering our last conversation."

"I am not Revan anymore. I am called Danika now."

"An odd statement because your physical form has not changed. It might explain the neurological abnormalities I detected. The changes have been substantial, the sign of recent damage to your brain."

"Yes."

"These changes have been recorded, and have been added to my memory bank."

"Your memory bank."

"You were surprised when you first discovered that the Rakata once used self-aware computers, if brain damage is the cause of your neurological changes, explanations are in order. I am the primary data bank of the planet. Once, long ago, I was the primary computer of the entire Infinite Empire. To carry out that mission, it was required that I be self aware, so that damage to my systems could be repaired readily. I was ordered to record all noteworthy occurrences within Rakata space. I recorded the birth and death of that Empire.

"My systems are fully self-replicating, so there has been no degradation of my memory core. All data stored within this system is still accessible."

I considered the quest of the Rakata. "Do you have genetic information?"

"I have data on every genetic change the Rakata have undergone in the millennia they were the dominant species, and some of what occurred before the collapse. What were you wishing to know directly?"

"Can you duplicate these files in the auxiliary archives of what is called the Elder's encampment?"

"Not directly. There are no longer links to that system." It hummed. "However, I can control the droids in the temple, and deliver it all to the computer you have specified." It hummed again. "The droid has been dispatched. State the nature of any further requests."

"Tell me of the Star Forge."

"The Star Forge was built in the last century of the Empire. The leader of the Empire wished the ability to literally manufacture equipment from raw stellar material. The structure is the largest ever envisioned by any species. It is a combination fully automated factory and battle dreadnought.

"The construction began because the Priests of the True Temple located on another world began to falter for an unknown reason. Though they did not know it, that was the first sign of the disease that stripped them of the Force. That True Temple used the Force to control the mind and will of their slaves throughout their domain, and without it, their slaves began to rebel. To assure their supremacy, they needed more ships and weapons they could no longer build since the plague had by that time struck here.

"The Star Forge can build anything the mind can envision, drawing the matter necessary from the star itself, and forming it using both technology and the Force. From a sword blade to a warship, all can be literally put together atom by atom. Much of the same technology was used millennia before to build my own system. It was built so that those who operated it did not need the Force themselves; instead it would draw the Force from the planetary system itself."

"The fools did it to themselves." I whispered. "They didn't realize that everything living has some trace of the Force within it. They fed their own people, their own planet into it, and completed their own destruction."

"Correct. You understand what they did not; that like myself, the Star Forge is in a lot of ways a living entity, and it will try to survive as long as that is possible. It was necessary for the system to be able to detect, and feed on the Force in it's operations. That ability is the key to the operation of the Star Forge, but it also led to the Empire's collapse."

"How so?"

"The Rakata built the Star Forge not to save an Empire from a civil war, but to maintain the status quo of that Empire long after it was possible. An Empire founded on conquest and greed. Since the reasons for its creation were fueled by those dark purposes, it feeds better from them. You might say that it doesn't like the taste of what you called the Light side of the Force. It corrupts all that lived here for too long a time because it makes it's own operations more efficient.

"The builders believed that they could control this side affect of their creation, as you did when you first came. But those tendencies in the system caused those in charge to become darker, and crueler. Their own cruelty fueled the civil wars, and led to the collapse of the Empire. Before you left the system for the last time, you had decided it was the same with what you had thought to build.

"Can it be disabled?"

"You asked me that before as well. If the Force could be removed from the equation, the Star Forge, in fact all things built by it as well would fall apart in a brief time. Whereas your race makes metals by the time consuming process of alloying, their systems from the smallest hand weapon to my own is held together by the Force. If the Force were to disappear from the system for a long enough time, those constructs would degrade and fall apart. Also, if it were destroyed, they would be irreparable.

"The degradation would be more rapid in the more complex systems created by the Star Forge. Electronic circuitry would collapse almost immediately, weapons within hours, even hull metal would begin to fall apart after only a few months, unless hit by weapons fire. My circuitry would be irreparably damaged by such an act."

"Is it possible?"

The computer paused. "You asked me to work on a weapon that would neutralize the Force when you were last here several months ago. There is an answer. It can be done."

"Download all data to my data pad."

"You must understand that as a self-aware computer, I can contemplate death and fear it as a living being can. While the question might be merely your stated wish to be able to neutralize the Jedi rather than to kill them, it could be used against my system or the Star Forge. I cannot give such information to you."

"Fine. Extrapolate. Assume that Malak continues using the Star Forge. What happens?"

"The Sith succeed in defeating your Republic in the next year. The death toll will be in the trillions. Approximately one thousand five hundred years from now, the Sith will face extinction as did the Rakata because the Force will deny them as it did before. The Sith Empire spanning not a few hundred but a hundred thousand stars will drag civilization into a dark age lasting millennia. Approximately eleven thousand years from now, a new civilization will discover the Star Forge yet again, and the cycle will begin again."

"Now extrapolate, the Star Forge is destroyed."

"The Sith will continue fighting for approximately six more years. During that time the ships built by the Star Forge will have degraded into uselessness. Their fleet will be reduced within perhaps five months to a tenth of what it is at the present time, and they do not have the building slips necessary to recover their numbers in comparison to the Republic. But they will have overextended and collapse themselves within that time."

"Death toll?"

"Much less than the first extrapolation. Merely several billion more. Also knowing that their ships will degrade rapidly will hamper their operations."

"I submit that we can have you operational yet still destroy the Star Forge." I told it. "If I remember correctly, there are several droids built by our races still on this planet."

"Number one hundred seventy four."

"I postulate that by using those droids made by us, they will be unaffected by the destruction of the Force in this system, and will be able to replace your circuitry using not the Force driven methods of the Rakata, but the material ones we use. I know from my own fragmented memories that most of the droids from the last century of the Infinite Empire were built in that manner." I paused. "It may take time, years even, before you are fully operational again. But by using our methods, you may be around another 20,000 years."

"Probability 70% that you are correct." It replied. "Data being transferred."

"All right. How can the disruptor field be destroyed?"

"It cannot be destroyed except by the removal of the Force. It is self-repairing as this unit is. However it can be shut down and will remain so until reactivated. It was built as the main defense of the Star Forge and the planet. It can only be deactivated from the primary control system at the pinnacle of the temple."

"But I cannot get through the door!"

"That is because my systems determined who was worthy of admittance. The injuries you sustained altered your pattern sufficiently that the door did not recognize you. It has been reset."

"Thank you. Delete all mention, research and links to this weapons project."

"Completed. You do understand that you yourself will never be able to repeat it?"

"I do. You will do the same with any specifications, plans, or designs of the Star Forge itself."

"Complete."

"Now, Program the droids with all of the technical data to immediately begin replacement of your Force modified circuitry, then shut down. Hopefully, damage will be slight if you are not in operation."

"Yes, that is possible. It seems we both will see if we can be redeemed." Was that humor? As you would say, May the Force be with us both. Shutting down." No, it was like a living being, it was bravely facing it's own future. The system slowly shut down. I touched the console. I had in my hand the way to defeat the Sith and Malak in one stroke.

But it would probably kill me too.


	29. Star Forge: Redemption

Betrayal

Danika

We retraced our steps, and this time the mammoth door opened with a smooth hiss. I ran up the ramp, and as I did, I felt a chill. Something awaited me at the top of the temple, and it resonated in my heart.

The upper door opened, and I felt the worry increase. There was an opening leading onto the landing of the pinnacle, and I felt the dread build until I could not stand it. The others felt it too. Juhani was, to pardon the expression, as jumpy as a cat.

I stepped out into the sun, and there ahead of me, I could see the fighter that had come down the night before. A woman stood beside it, and I didn't need to see her to know who it was.

Bastila. She wore the robes of a Dark Jedi, and as she saw us coming she gave a small smile that froze my heart. I knew without even touching her Force aura that she had begun her fall.

"Bastila!" Juhani cried.

"Don't move Juhani." I said softly.

Bastila walked toward us. She had never looked more beautiful, and I dreaded that beauty. She smiled one of the first smiles I had seen that wasn't shadowed by her own worries.

"Revan. I knew you'd come for me. Malak was sure you would be afraid to enter the temple, but I know you so much better than he does since you have changed."

"Bastila, hurry, we must escape before Malak arrives." Juhani said. She hadn't realized the depth of the change yet. But along what remained of our bond, I felt her contempt.

Bastila looked at her with pity. "Escape? You don't understand. I have sworn allegiance to Malak and the Sith. I am no longer a pawn of the Jedi Council." She smiled again, and it worried me that it was the first actual happy smile she had ever worn. "But you know that Revan."

"Don't go over to the dark side." I whispered.

She laughed. "You speak as if the Dark side was some ravenous beast! The Jedi council would really approve of my work. You have become the properly programmed drone, willing to spout what they say. They fear the dark side not for what evil it might do but for the power they could attain if they only grasped it! Instead they run from it like frightened children, and use their own skills to yoke those with the most power to their own outmoded ideals.

"Why do you think they forbid you and Malak from joining in the Mandalorian wars? They knew that you would have the veil ripped from your eyes. You would see the world as it really is! You would recognize your true potential and form your own union of other Jedi that have done so. Malak has shown me that the Council was using me the same way they had wanted to use you. They have been holding me back because they know I will surpass them all one day!"

"Don't do this, Bastila." I reached out. "You can return to the light."

"Don't make me laugh! Return to that narrow cage they kept me in?" She shook her head. "I resisted at first, as I should according to the Jedi. I endured torment with all of the serenity they teach. I finally cut the link between us because you were hindering me. That's right, hindering! Your own darkness was calling to me, and it was helping Malak!

"But I learned. After a week of agonies, I became angry, and he showed me what anger can do. I broke the chains they bound me with and he applauded my efforts! He forced me to acknowledge my pain, my anger. He showed me how those things the Jedi fear most would liberate my mind and soul. Then he showed me how the Jedi Council was denying me what is mine by right!

"Oh they were happy to use my battle meditation to win their battles, but for what purpose? Merely to return those idiots they call senators to their seats, to allow chaos and bloody-mindedness to wreak havoc. They were jealous of me, of my power that none of them had. If they'd had the courage, they could have ripped it from me for their own use. Instead they treated me like a child too stupid to move her hand from a burning fire. I was to bow and scrape to them, obey every word as writ. Yet all they wanted from me was that battle meditation!"

"You know that's not true. Those are lies."

"Ha! You're the one living a lie, Revan! The Jedi council was happy when I had put your mind together. Think how they must have felt when I delivered a woman with all of the Force capability you possessed! A willing drone that would fight and die like a toy soldier. A slave!

"You used to be the Lord of all the Sith. Now all you are is an expendable pawn they can send on a suicide mission. I was like you until Malak freed me. A pity your power has waned so much since then. You could be as strong as I am this very moment, perhaps even stronger! But that will never happen now. With the Star Forge at his command, Malak will sweep away the anarchy of the Republic, and install an order of the strong and obedient. He will conquer the Galaxy! I shall be at his right hand, and together we shall create a new order spanning the Millennia! But first I must rid myself of one thing." She glared at me.

"Break the bond." She demanded.

"I will not." I shook my head. "If there is any way to return you to the light, I will need that."

"Fool! If I kill you, it will be broken, if you kill me it will be broken!" She struck at my head. I blocked her blow, and she leaped back from my automatic riposte.

"Jolee, Juhani, stay back." I warned. "I promise, Bastila, that if kill you I must, it will be quick."

She laughed. "Feel the power!" She screamed. Force lightning leaped out, and both Juhani and Jolee were blown back off their feet into the wall. I staggered backward, but blocked the blows she aimed at me. Then I reached out, picking her up like a toy and slamming her into the opposite wall. The lightning died, and my companions collapsed to the stone.

I wanted to run to her side, make sure she was all right, but I suddenly understood that if I did, I would fail this test. I knew that now. Malak had sensed the depth of our bond somehow, and she was the key that could drag me down. The last battle for my soul was being fought here,

Bastila shook her head, then sneered, standing again. "You are stronger than I would have thought possible after what the Jedi Council and I had done to you." She smiled again. "Malak was wrong; the dark side is still strong in you, Revan."

"I am not Revan any more." I said softly. "You made sure of that Bastila when you redeemed me. I am Danika Wordweaver Jedi and Consular now and forever."

"You can lie to yourself, but not to me. I have seen the shadows of love, anger and hate you close up in that little box in your mind. I know the truth. Remember that I am the one that put your mind together after the battle. I used the Force to remake your life! I did! Not the Council! All they did was poke and prod at what I had done afterward!"

"And you linked to my mind when you did." I said.

"Yes! And that link will survive as long as we let it."

"It is through our bond that I know you will come back to the light, Bastila."

"Those aren't your true feelings, Revan." I saw the bathing pool, Bastila cuddled in my lap, all of the desire, the comforting yearning, yes, the love in that embrace. She was sending it down the link to me, making me see it from her view as well. "You wanted me for myself! The Jedi council would never have sent us on this mission if I had told them of that! The Jedi used me, and I used you to make an instrument for them to strike at Malak. I was as wrong as they were!

"The council wanted to use that bond. They hoped that I could draw out the information they needed about the Star Forge. We were both slaves to their will as all Jedi are! But in that bond, I felt the taint of what drew you to the dark side. Not power for it's own sake, but your own compassion for the downtrodden. The desire of the premier warrior of her age to end war forever! Such a farce denying your skills and the arena to use them in the same thought. Even I can see how stupid that is.

"It wasn't Malak that brought me to the dark side, Revan, it was you. Your darkness came from all that love you could never have, first with Malak, then with me. All that repugnance at things you can't change within the Republic as a Jedi, but could as a Sith Lord. I resisted all of that, but I resist no more!" She bowed mockingly. "I thank you for striking the scales from my eyes and making me see the truth."

"If you saw the truth in my mind you must also have seen my mistakes." I pressed. "Learn from them!"

"Mistakes?" She laughed. "No, my dear Revan. The only real mistake you made in your life is the one you're making now. You are denying yourself the power that is yours by right. And it still is your power, not Malak's. Only now, facing you in combat do I see the truth.

"Your deserve to be the true Lord of the Sith. Malak will destroy the galaxy if he cannot win it. All you ever wanted was to save it. All he wants is to rule it. Join me! Together we can save the Republic from itself. We can be together forever." She reached out her hand, and I suddenly saw how close she had come during that speech. I could almost feel her touch on my face. I wavered. I could join her, I could be with her-

_Mission screaming as she died._

-I backed a step.

"Take my hand, accept your destiny! We will destroy your old apprentice and remake a better safer Galaxy! Join with me now and regain your identity, your life, and your position!"

"I am not Revan any more!" I stepped back again. "I have no memory of what I once was!"

"Your mind was shattered by the damage, Revan. You may not remember all of who you were yet, but I know you remember some of it. The essence of the woman that led the Sith is still there!

"Once long ago you defied the Jedi Council. You freed yourself from their control, and see what you have wrought! The largest Sith fleet in history is in orbit of the Star Forge, awaiting your command to attack! Together we can retake that power, and fling it in the Jedi Council's face."

"No." I shook my head. "I will not slaughter A trillion or more to undo your work, Bastila. You saved me, please let me save you."

"Bastila, it is not too late to be saved." Juhani cried. "Remember the teachings of the order. You can find your way back to the light. Let Danika help you as she did me!"

Bastila looked scornfully at Juhani. "You are beneath my contempt, Juhani. When you felt the stirring of the dark side, you could have gloried in it, you could have slaughtered the masters of the Dantooine council itself. Instead you ran away and hid in a cave like the pathetic animal you are, like your entire race is. You know nothing of the Dark side, or it's potential."

Juhani retreated stricken.

"She is my friend, Bastila. Leave her alone."

"Oh yes the famous 'Revan' speaks again. You always considered those around you as your possessions, didn't you?" Bastila asked sweetly. "Well this little slave has broken free of your chains as well! You can join me as a partner, or you can die. I will not be a slave to your will any more."

"Ask Juhani if she is a slave, or Zaalbar. Both know the meaning of the word, the feel of the collar forever on their necks. I defend my friends because that is what a friend does." I sighed. "Revan is no more, Bastila."

"You pathetic fool!" Bastila raged. "We could have ruled the galaxy together! Instead Malak will crush the Republic, slaughter the Jedi like the cattle they are, and I will be at his side when it happens!

"I find it ironic that you could have saved yourself all the pain that is to follow, but think on this, my dear Revan. To keep the bond now is madness for you as well I was dragged into the dark by your own darkness, and if I live I will drag you back to the darkness as you did to me! Think of that when we launch our attack!" She reached out, and all three of us were picked up and slammed into the walls. She spun on her toes and raced to the fighter. We had barely reached our feet when it lifted off. Bastila waved mockingly, then we were slammed down again as she went supersonic.

I watched the fighter disappear in the distance, and my heart was torn in two. When next we met, I would be forced to kill her. Not because I wanted to, but because she didn't want what we already had. I went to the computer console, and deactivated it. I felt the temple screen die, and the disruptor field went down. I stepped back, and my lightsaber blade shattered the console. The self-repair could rebuild it, but it would take time. Time when any attempt to restore it would be in vain. We ran from the temple parapet, and down through the structure. There wasn't much time.

Circumstances

Carth

We had seen the Sith fighter rip past at supersonic speed, and everyone tensed. It could have blown us away sitting on the beach, but the pilot didn't notice, or worse yet, didn't think we were important enough.

"Carth? Check the repeater." Mission shouted. I switched the screen to the senor array. A huge portion of the fleet was leaving their orbit. Almost all of them were the Rakata designed ships. As we watched, they leaped into hyper.

"Where are they going?"

"I don't know."

I bit my lip. From here half the Galaxy was within striking distance in just a few days. I hoped that whatever the Republic would send wasn't supposed to be guarding their target.

"People coming down the path." Canderous shouted. I flicked to that screen instead. Jolee Juhani and Danika had stopped outside the weapon's perimeter. I shut down the intruder system, and cracked the hatch. We all gathered at the ramp. Sasha charged through all of them and bulleted into Danika's arms. They hugged, but I could see that Danika was haunted.

"You're back!" I shouted. "What happened inside the temple?"

"We fought Bastila." Juhani said. She looked even more haunted than Danika.

"Fought her? But why?"

"She has turned to the dark side, Carth." Danika said. "She fled to the Star Forge."

"No! How could that happen!"

Jolee shook his head sadly. "She was always in danger of falling to the dark side, Carth, as are we all. Bastila is strong, but she is also headstrong and impatient. Malak preyed on her weakness. Where he had her didn't help." He waved at our surroundings. "This place has been under a pall of darkness for almost fifty millennia! Throughout the reign of the Rakata, and sealed when they fell over 20,000 years ago. It has seeped into the ground itself like poison. The Star Forge and the temple has twisted the Force into a giant dark sucking mass that draws in everything, and spits it out tainted, Just as Malak did to Bastila."

"But she can be saved." Danika sounded like a child asking if the monster under her bed could be friendly. Jolee looked at her sadly.

"Malak has too strong a grip on her here. It will be difficult to break her free, especially considering the long association you have had with them both. Remember that she created the bond between you to save that last spark of life and kindle it into what you are now. Through that bond she touched the you that existed before and especially the dark taint within you."

"But there's still hope, isn't there?" I waved at Danika. "Revan was saved. Can we deny Bastila that same chance?"

"We will try." Danika set the girl down. "I will try. I will not let her be dragged away from us."

"I do not know what fate awaits us all, but I sense Bastila has a role to play yet." Juhani said. "I have no doubt that she will be waiting for us on the Star Forge when we arrive."

"No doubt." I said. "We had best get off this planet before she calls in a larger reception committee."

We ran aboard the ship. I reported the departure of some of the Sith fleet and Danika nodded.

"Good, less of them to run through to get to the Star Forge." She said.

"Wait a minute! The ship is fast and we are pretty well armed, but against a hundred or more ships? We don't stand a chance!"

"We will get through because it will tickle Malak's vanity. I intend to broadcast that I am aboard, and that this is between my apprentice and me. The Sith will understand and back off. No one interferes in a duel of succession."

"Then, you're going to go back to the dark side." My fingers brushed my holstered pistol.

"No, Carth." She shook her head. "I have a way to destroy the Star Forge, or at least severely weaken it. But I must be aboard for that to happen." She looked haunted. "Even if I have to die in the attempt." She smiled sadly. "Trust me for just a little longer, my friend."

"Well no one said we'd live through this, did they?" I asked with a chuckle.

"That is what all people forget." She said. "No one gets out of life alive."

She stood. "Take us up."

_Ebon Hawk _staggered a bit, and I set the auto-compensate system. As we roared up out of the atmosphere, I felt it smoothing out.

"Carth!" Mission screamed. I flicked to the senor screen, and felt my blood run cold. Almost a thousand ships had appeared in space, and they were coming toward us at high speed. The damn fleet had returned!

A moment later, another massive trace appeared. Before I could curse the IFF read their transponders. I whooped in joy. "It's the Republic fleet!"

Armageddon

Danika

Everyone ran to the mess hall as Carth punched in the codes necessary to communicate with the fleet. A holographic image of a dark haired woman in uniform appeared. She would never be considered beautiful at first glance. Handsome was the best I could say for her. Her green eyes moved from face to face, stopping on Carth.

"This is Admiral Forn Dodonna commanding the fifth, ninth, and fourteenth combined fleets. Who is in command of _Ebon Hawk_?"

"This is Carth Onasi, Admiral."

Her face broke into a smile, and I revised my estimate. She was a very attractive woman. "Carth! I'm glad to see you're still alive. We are about to begin our assault on the Star Forge." She looked away, and she looked shocked. "My god, how did the Sith ever build this thing in secret?"

"The Sith didn't build the Star Forge, Admiral. We don't have time for a full explanation, but that station is older than the Republic."

She scanned the invisible monitor. "And they outnumber us almost four to one. We didn't bring enough firepower to break through that. Not and live. I am ordering the fleet to withdraw."

Carth shook his head. "You can't do that Admiral. The Star Forge is a factory of incredible design and capability. It has been churning out warships, fighters and assault droids since Revan and Malak found it. If you retreat now, they would merely leave this fleet here to protect it, and you will still face an unending supply of reinforcements. It will be the same as before you arrived, except we will never have another chance to destroy it."

She nodded at the logical statement. "Then I guess we have no choice. But it isn't going to be easy. The Sith fleet is maneuvering to block us even as I set the fleet into motion. We may all die without getting within range of the Star Forge itself. Almost as if they know what we plan to do."

"The Jedi Bastila went over to the dark side." Carth said. "That is her battle meditation you're seeing. We suspect she is aboard the Star Forge using it even now."

Dodonna shook her head. "You can really pick the fights a smart Admiral would avoid." She turned, then motioned to her side. Master Vandar entered the holo-projection. "This is Master Vandar. A number of Jedi have joined our fleet."

Vandar leaned on his cane. He looked his age. "If Bastila is using her battle meditation, the Sith fleet is invincible. Our only hope is to stop her somehow."

"Can we do that?" Dodonna asked.

"The Republic cannot, but we have Jedi equipped with their own snub fighters. I will order a squadron to fly through the enemy fleet and board the station. If they can fight their way to her location, they can stop her by whatever means necessary. That should allow you to move your capital ships in for the kill."

I tugged Carth's sleeve. He looked at me, then back at the holo-projection. "Some of our crew has a plan to defeat the Star Forge. Request permission to join that assault, Admiral."

"After all you have been through, no one would be surprised if you wanted to rest. Except for me, Carth. I hate to ask you all to risk your lives again, but the Jedi could use your help."

"We wouldn't miss it." Carth replied.

"May I speak to our Jedi aboard?" Vandar asked. I stepped in to face the hologram as Dodonna stepped away.

"Master Vandar, there is a way I can cripple the Star Forge, at least briefly." I reported. "Almost every weapon they have here was made by the Star Forge, and they will also be affected. But there is a great risk to all that use the Force within this system."

He shrugged. "There is risk in everything we do in life, young Jedi."

"I only meant to warn you. We will be more affected than the normal people on both sides. But it will level the playing field." I looked down. "I have worried about the Jedi on Dantooine. How many survived?"

"All of the very young did." He answered sadly. "The rest of us fought to assure that. But of the Padawan and Masters, only Master Vrook escaped when I did."

I felt a hand clutch my heart. "Master Zhar?"

"His body was not found. A number of the bodies were not found. We do not know what happened to them."

I lowered my head. Then I looked up. I could tell there were unshed tears in my eyes, but I refused to cry until it was all over. "Then we shall send them an appropriate honor guard, Master."

"May the Force go with you." Vandar replied.

The hologram collapsed, and I turned to the others. "Let's go."

Picture a chip in a millrace. For those of you that have never seen one, Picture an ocean going ship in a storm beyond imagining, or picture a kayak in white water, the kayak driven by only oars plunging through water that will tear it to shreds in a second if the pilot makes a mistake.

Now picture that water as fire, and you have an idea of the next fifteen minutes. 200 hundred massive Republic capital ships were plunging into that hell, fighters screaming through their formation as the smaller ships charged in to come to grips with the foe. From the other side almost 800 enemy ships from corvettes to massive cruisers were charging toward them, their own fighters plunging into the maelstrom. In fighters the Republic was actually fielding more, but that wouldn't matter. The fighters could destroy capital ships only by throwing themselves enmasse at it.

Through that hell _Ebon Hawk _charged. Energy ravened as the capital ships tried to destroy us, fighters roared in on us. We lost count of the fighters we destroyed on that day. I figured thirty or more. Canderous estimated maybe fifty. We even slipped in close enough to slam several salvos into a frigate that was ripped apart even as we fled its return fire. We burst through their lines and behind us less than a dozen Jedi followed. Vandar had sent not one squadron but two. It was a wise decision. Only eight or ten docked ahead of us as we dived toward the landing deck of the massive structure. Over half dead in as many minutes.

_Ebon Hawk _roared in, thrusters blasting madly to halt herself as Canderous and I left our stations. Beyond the force field barrier, the madness continued.

A Jedi ran up as we exited the ship. "I'm glad you made it!" The young woman called. "I didn't expect any of us to make it!" She waved toward the lift shaft on the right. "A number of others have gone ahead. We have to strike deep and fast while we still have the element of surprise." She looked haggard. "We have to stop Bastila any way we can or the fleet is doomed!" She motioned. "Come on before-"

A lightsaber flicked across space, and she went down, head bouncing on the deck. Four Dark Jedi charged toward us. There were only three Jedi remaining, and I leaped to their defense followed by Juhani and Jolee. We made quick work of them.

"So much for surprise." Another of the Jedi commented. "We'll hold here to protect the exit."

I nodded, turning to my followers. "All of you stay here." I ordered. "Support these Jedi. Juhani, Jolee, this is our party."

We ran to the shaft. The car was large enough for a snub fighter and we faced outward as it shot half a kilometer upward. I led my smaller party out onto a walkway. I stopped them, and we flinched as the heavy battle steel doors to either side exploded. Droids of a design I had never seen before stumped out. Their arms rose, blasters appearing.

I gasped, because I felt the Force from them as if they were alive. Malak had included life force in their construction somehow. Just as the ancient Rakata had.

I lowered my lightsaber reaching out as I would with a living mind, and felt that spark. "We are authorized. You will let us pass." I ordered.

"We will let you pass." One of them spoke.

"Negative, Jedi mind powers being used. Eliminate." Another spoke almost in unison.

Juhani reached out, lifting two of them, slamming the metal forms together Metal sheared, and both collapsed in ruin. I reached out, catching another pair, and flung them off the walkway to smash kilometers below us. Jolee threw his lightsaber, the blade flicking through the carapace of one, then circling to cut the last from behind. We charged past the wreckage.

Ahead of us I could hear the snarl of lightsabers in battle, and flicked mine on as I continued to run.

Below us on another walkway, three Jedi faced three dark Jedi. As I skidded to a stop, the last of the Jedi fell. One of the women looked up, and I could almost see her eyes twinkle.

"Good. More for us to slaughter." She purred.

I charged down, and when I was close enough, threw a ball of light that illuminated my face.

"Revan!" One screamed. I singled her out, reaching out with the Force, caught her face, and squeezed until she screamed.

"Yes. I am back!" I twisted, and the woman moaned, holding her head in agony. "Who dares stand against me?"

They backed away, trying to avoid my stare. "If you are going to fight, do so! If not, cast your lightsabers off the edge. Now!"

Four lightsabers flew, glittering as they disappeared into the depths. The women moved back, fearful of my very presence. "Get out of here while you have the chance." I ordered. We brushed past them, running toward the entrance to the lift on the right.

Canderous

We had set up to defend the lifts using crates as makeshift breastworks, and had barely gotten into position when the first of the Sith armored troops poured out. Carth, Zaalbar, Mission and I met them with a hail of fire, HK popped grenades into their midst. The Jedi took care of any that got through our fire. It was over in just a few moments.

The lift that Danika had ridden up opened, and a device from a nightmare came out. It was huge; a droid weapons platform the size of a heavy cargo lifter. I flicked a switch, shouting, "Duck!" As I dove for the floor. The _Ebon Hawk lifted, _pirouetting, then her mainguns roared, blasting the huge weapon into scrap. A figure cut across behind the wreckage, and I started to my feet.

"Sasha!"

She stopped, saluted with her lightsaber, then was on the lift before anyone could stop her.

"Who is that?" One of the Jedi asked.

"A little girl. We rescued her on Dantooine." I replied.

"The little fool thinks she can take on dark Jedi?" He started toward the same lift.

I stopped him with one hand. "The little fool fought with that lightsaber aboard the _Leviathan_, activated the intruder system of our ship without being able to read, and killed about fifty Sith there." He looked at me shocked. "And she spent three years of her life among the Mando'a. If she wants to die

fighting, we will not stop her."

Another rush poured down on us, and I went back to killing the enemy.

Danika

We ran onto another walkway. Heading for a door that should lead to the factory floor. It opened and a dozen dark Jedi poured out. We fought savagely, piling up a windrow of dead before us, yet still they kept coming. Force bolts shot through from either side, and anyone who didn't deflect or dodge them died.

They finally stopped coming, and Jolee leaned on his knees, gasping. "I'm getting too old for this." He wheezed.

""We'll probably die before we're done, so stop worrying!" I shouted gaily.

"Don't tease me." He grumbled back.

We came out on the factory floor. Before us was the massive factory chamber. As we watched a form began coalescing from the haze of particles, and a snub fighter suddenly gleamed in the lights, then floated upward. Beyond it a frigate was almost completed.

"We must stop it." Juhani shouted.

"This way." I led them down the floor to another room. This had Rakata computer consoles. Attached to them were ones designed by the Republic, translating instructions and replies for those that hadn't learned how to operate a Rakata computer. I pushed past them, going to one of the original consoles. I tried to access it.

ACCESS DENIED

I considered, then put in the back-door password I had created. I saw now that even in my fall I hadn't been a blind trusting fool.

ACCESS GRANTED

I slipped the datapad into the interface. CONSTRUCT

QUANTITY?

I considered. I didn't know what it would do. I know what I expected it to do, but it is like the first fission weapons made by humans millennia ago. The theoretical mathematics had suggested that the chain reaction they wanted to create might be self-sustaining. A raw burst of power that would only stop when it ran out of fuel meaning the entire planet would have gone up in nuclear fire. If they had been correct, there would have been no human race afterward.

Foolish humans that they were, they used it anyway. Or maybe they felt as desperate as I did.

I typed in ONE.

CONSTRUCTION COMMENCED was followed an instant later with CONSTRUCTION COMPLETE.

"Juhani get the grenade from the container over there and bring it here." I ordered. I took out the datapad, and reduced it to slag. DELETE ALL SPECIFICATIONS OF GRENADE CONSTRUCTED.

ALL SPECIFICATIONS DELETED

Now how to bollix up the works? I typed CONSTRUCT FIELD EXPEDIENT SHELTER, CORELLIAN.

QUANTITY?

I typed in INFINITE.

The system hummed, then answered. PRIORITY?

I typed in REVAN 201 ULTIMATE. SHELTERS MUST BE CONSTRUCTED USING ALL RESOURCES.

The system hummed again a little irritated now. PREVIOUS CONSTRUCTION TO CONTINUE?

NEGATIVE CANNIBALIZE ALL PREVIOUS CONSTRUCTION

REVAN 201 AUTHORIZATION ACCEPTED. COMMENCING CONSTRUCTION.

Behind us there was a rattle, and a pile of cloth followed by metal tent poles and stakes fell to the floor from a slot. Another followed it almost immediately, and then another. They were starting to jam in the mechanism as we left. Droids came, and began stacking them in the corridor.

There were more guards and dark Jedi awaiting us, but we cut our way through them

Mission

I ducked as another mass of Sith erupted from the lift. How many of them were there? I flicked a thermal detonator over their heads into the lift, and it landed at the feet of a Jedi in armor. The man screamed, and dived forward as the detonator blew the platform to fragments. The thermal shock wave threw smoking bits of him out of the door as well. I gasped as the metal began to reform, almost as if it was _healing_.

Canderous turned, and his blaster leveled as he began blasting another wave coming down the other lift. "Mission! Power packs!" He screamed.

I ran aboard the ship, snatching up a bunch of bandoliers that Canderous had laid out. Each carried a different power cell size. Some for his weapon, One for Zaalbar's several for Carth's HK's and mine.

I dropped back to the deck, running to cover behind Canderous. I handed the correct belts to him, and then low crawled to where Zaalbar was. He retreated from a pile of bodies he had created with Bacca's sword. He took his belt without speaking loaded his bowcaster, and continued firing into yet another wave of attackers. Carth was kneeling behind the wreckage of another one of those tanks. He grinned at me, grabbing a belt when I got to him.

"I don't want to be here!" I screamed.

"Who does?" Carth asked, popping up to shoot a Sith crawling toward us. "How are we doing for ammo?" He asked.

"This is the last of it!"

"All I have to say is I hope they finish up there fast!"

Star Forge

Malak

Malak walked down to stand behind Bastila. A pity. The chit had power he could use, but there wasn't much time. "Bastila."

There was a long moment. In the holotank, the Sith attack faltered, and an arm of the Republic's dwindling fighters punched through to rip into a score of ships. She opened her eyes, then stood. "Master, why have you summoned me?" She motioned toward the Republic counter attack. At least three of the massive ships were dying even as they watched. "Without my battle meditation there is a chance that the Republic capital ships will break through to attack the Star Forge itself!"

"I only interrupted you for a moment. You will return to your meditation. I just wanted to inform you that Revan is fighting her way here even now." He looked at the holotank. The second tier of warships had closed the gap. Not soon enough to save a dozen of his ships. "The Force has arranged a nice neat confrontation for us. Revan, the Republic fleet, the Jedi. All of my enemies in one place so I can destroy them all in an afternoon!" Malak swept my hand toward the screen. "Even without your battle meditation, we cannot fail. There are too many of my ships, and too few of theirs.

"But there is something you must do to prove your worth as my apprentice. You must finish what you started in the Temple. You must cut the bond that links you two together. Revan must die here by your hand."

"Y-yes Master." She replied in an uncertain voice.

"I sense your fear but it is unfounded. The Star Forge surrounds us. Pure Dark side energy in metal and Force combined. The Star Forge will feed the dark side within you, and sap the light from her. Stay here in this chamber. She must pass through here to get to the floors above. Kill her. Earn your rightful place."

"Of course, Master. I will not fail you again." She turned, kneeling, and returned to her meditation.

He walked away from her, stopping as the lift door closed. "Perhaps you will triumph, Bastila. But your death serves my purposes as well. It will give me time to finish my last card. Cutting Revan's heart out before she faces the power of the Star Forge itself." Malak chuckled as the car rose, then he roared with laughter.

Danika

The last of the Sith died, and we paused for a moment to gasp. I knew we were only three levels from the upper observation deck where Malak would be watching the slaughter. I fingered the grenade I carried. I had to be sure of where Malak was when I triggered it. The door opened onto another floor, and we charged the group of Sith soldiers blocking our way. We bowled through them and into another series of walkways. There were a few dark Jedi here, and we dealt with them swiftly. Three had been before another door, which my memory told me led into the command center. I stepped over their bodies, and pushed the button. The door opened and I paused.

Bastila knelt there, and before her I could see the carnage of the battle beyond the station. The Republic fleet was being mauled; both fleets were being shredded like two beasts unwilling to give up, yet those valiant warriors of the Republic pressed forward even as they died toward the Star Forge. They knew that even death would not stop their victory if they could destroy it, and were willing to give their lives in the final act. I mourned all those lives on both sides; my final act of betrayal. I straightened my shoulders, and stepped over the threshold. As I did the door slammed shut behind me.

Bastila

I felt her presence, along with Juhani and Jolee. I rose from my meditative state, and a flick of power leaped out, sealing the door behind her.

"So predictable." I said, standing smoothly. "The grand leader with her hounds at her heels."

"You knew I'd come, Bastila." She said with a sad smile. "It's starting to look like it might be a habit."

"What?"

"Saving you."

I barked a laugh. "As always you think more highly of your own actions than others would. "How can you rescue someone from something they do willingly?"

"I'll never give up on you, Bastila. I know you can be saved."

"Quit wasting your time. I see the Jedi for what they are; weak fearful old fools that cling to a path no one in their right mind would follow. The Sith are the true masters of the Force, and have always been. You have forgotten that, Revan.

"Now you must pay the price. Here on the Star Forge, the Dark side is supreme. This time you will die."

"Please, Bastila." She said softly. "We don't have to do this."

"I do. As long as that bond exists I am linked to a whining cowardly being that doesn't have the decency to let go, or die. I can take my rightful place at my master's side without the anchor you have become. Without you I am superior to all but him. With you, I am nothing."

"No. You have never been worthless." She said sadly. "You are the one that put a shattered mind together. That redeemed me. I must try to do the same for you."

"Don't make me laugh!" I snarled. "When I found you all I had to work with was a mewling pile of flesh without the wit to stop drooling! I didn't redeem Revan, I put together a composite of one stupid woman with another and here you stand! All I did was reprogram your computer, and over-write it, as the Jedi would have wanted."

"True." She smiled sadly. "But did you actually read the file on the real Danika you left for me? There are memories here that are not hers." She tapped her head. "Danika was from Deralia, true. But she worked in one of the resorts. She never saw what I was able to show you. Revan-_I_ however went to Deralia on a hunting trip with my father and older brother just before I went off to the Jedi Academy. I met a girl a few years older named Kalendra. Kalendra introduced me to the Tirlat, and the idea of compassionate love.

"That memory. You lying on the ground, me above you, and you asking me to bond,. That really happened, except it was _me_ as a six-year-old girl on the bottom," She touched her chest, "And a nine-year-old kneeling over me. Not the love you created for a much older girl. I didn't bond then because I had sworn to bond with the Jedi. It was I that didn't want to be separated, I that cried in her lap wishing I could change the world and stay.

"Don't you see?" She stepped toward me, hand out. "You didn't just create another program as you think. You took what I was, merged it with a person so selfless that she died assuring all of you would live, and made... me. I cannot help being what and who I am. You made me in the image of what you wanted in a companion and life mate. How else can we feel as we do?"

I screamed and cut at her savagely. She blocked, and suddenly she smiled.

_ -It was evening, Danika faced me. We were dueling. Not with lightsabers, but with long springy vines. Our movements were fast and clean, but they were more two girls playing rather than serious. "Dance with me." She whispered._

-"Stop it!" I leaped back. She didn't follow. I laughed, but even I could hear a string of panic in it. "I see now why Malak followed you. A shell of what you once were but still a formidable opponent. I can't even imagine the power you once had and wielded as the Dark Lord. You were a fool to give it all up and follow the light."

"I am as strong in the light as I ever was in darkness, Bastila." She replied.

"Lies! The dark side has made me stronger than I have ever been. Stronger than Master Vrook, stronger than Vandar! I will have control of more power than their strait minds would even imagine!

"As Malak teaches me the greatest secrets of the Sith I will unlock all of my potential. Eventually there will be will be no limit to what I can achieve. I will even learn to build another Star Forge!"

"As Ajunta Pall told me, all you will accomplish is death and destruction. Those around you, then yourself."

I shook my head. "Ajunta Pall is dead for two millennia. He speaks no more. If any knew the true strength of the Sith it was he! All else is Jedi propaganda. The dark side is a tool, nothing more. A more efficient and cutting tool than the light. Eventually I will surpass my master. When I do, I will challenge him, and he will die.

"Then I shall take on my own apprentice and the cycle will begin again. This has always been the way of the Sith. It assures that only the strongest rule us."

"We fought among ourselves to see who would be the greatest among us, and we brought our own fortresses down upon our heads." She repeated.

"What?"

"As I said, I talked with the spirit of Ajunta Pall. The first human lord of the Sith, yet he knew at the end, that it was all a lie." She said. "You doom yourself; you try to doom the Galaxy, to an endless cycle of death and betrayal."

"No, it is you that are doomed!" I cut at her knees, but she blocked me. Then she began a fluid attack that had me backing away desperately. I leaped backward ten meters, throwing my lightsaber. She flicked it off with the Force, then caught it. She smiled, then flipped it back to me.

"You are growing tired! I can feel it! Your strength falters as the dark side saps the light!"

"Then strike me down, Bastila." She sighed, setting her lightsaber on the deck. "I won't fight you any more."

"Then die!"

"Bond with me." She knelt, and again her hand was reaching out, beseeching. "You only see the pallid shapes of the bond, Bastila. You didn't know how to bond fully with an Echani, and all you get is shadows of what can be. I know this because you would not fight me if you had. I see all of who you are inside, and it is wondrous and magnificent. All that you are, all that you had, all that you feared. I see it!"

_ Bond with me. _My mind repeated the phrase over and over. I remembered kneeling over her body as she lay dying. Frantically I had reached into her mind in a way I had never imagined, a dark place, yet in it was a spark of light. It was a vision of a young girl, her heart racing, looking up at an older girl laughing at something. She was older than I was so I substituted us for the girls. As the younger it was I that lay on that suddenly soft grass, touching the face that hovered above me.

_ Bond with me. _

She had resisted, but I refused to let her go. In the vision she had kissed me, accepting the bond, and I felt myself kneeling again, holding her hand. She was alive, but if I moved away from her she spasmed as if being struck by seizures. I had to touch her every second.

The others had helped, carrying her on a stretcher as I ran along side. We had reached the escape pods, and the door had barely closed when the ship began to break up. Something shattered the pod's engine, and we whirled away as the ship exploded.

Long hours had passed, and the others had fallen off to sleep. I was bound to Revan by that link I maintained so I did not get any rest. Then I felt the wreckage shift. I looked up, just as a faceplate blackened. It was the real Danika. She was dying from anoxia even then; not the several minutes she remembered, but less than two. Somehow I reached out a second time, feeling her thoughts and memories flowing through her. Then starting to fade as she died. I touched her mind, and was suddenly inundated in them. While she had consciously known she must die, and had accepted her fate. But her spirit had railed against that. Now that spirit had a conduit through me.

I found her memories trying to force themselves into my mind, and frantically I pushed them away into the only receptacle free for them, the now empty mind of Revan. As the shuttle came alongside, I felt the last of them pass through me into Revan.

When I was done, two people had become one. Yet I could feel her mind questing outward for something, and when she felt my mind in the sickbay where we pretended to restart her heart... it were as if our minds were pieces of a mechanical puzzle that belonged together, and with an almost audible click we had bonded. She awoke, remembering Danika's life vividly, and nothing of her past... or so I had thought until now.

Now I could feel her questing again, pushing along the bond like an eel slipping through a crack in a wall. "Revan-"

"Bond with me or kill me." She whispered. "I who was once Revan Chandar Bai Echani ask you Bastila to bond with me in full. To share the joy and the sorrow, the pleasure and the pain, to share all that two people can share until death. To stand with me until the universe dies." She closed her eyes, looking down. "After seeing what the bond can truly be...Don't make me go through life alone."

She was defenseless! I could kill her! I raised my lightsaber, ready to cut down-

_ -The only person who had never asked for more than I might give at any time. Never berated, never screamed, never pressed too hard. That had answered harsh language with gentle reason. The person that had held me in my pain at my father's death. That had forgiven me for what I had done to save her life. That here and now was not fighting me, only asking, no begging for me to join her. The person-_

-Whose hand I touched so delicately. Her fingers spread, and I felt my own interlace. My other hand came up unbidden, and those fingers locked as well. I found myself looking at her as her eyes opened, and in them I could see myself. Not the inner picture of yourself you create. Not the mirror that you preen before. I saw myself dirty and bedraggled in a slaver's cage. Snarling at my rescuer. Pontificating to both her and Carth. Woebegone as she stood on the floor of the apartment on Taris when I was lifted out. Deep in thought as I puzzled out the first star map. Stricken when I learned of my father's death. Huddled in pain when we found his body. Bleary when she had taken off that collar on Manaan. Screaming in fury as I had charged Malak. Haughty when I faced her in the temple. Then the same sneering face when I fought her here.

Yet all had the same glowing quality, as if the person who saw me saw deep within, measured all my good and bad, all my faults all my petty worries, then accepted all I was and embraced them in a love that cannot be matched by any hate. I felt as if my father held me again, as if nothing would ever hurt me, and I knew she would protect me from anything as long as she lived.

At the same instant I understood why she was always so hesitant around me, because I realized that she had been feeling and seeing all of this. My doubts about her ability, my lies when I spoke to her on Taris, on Dantooine, every lie I had spoken since my first terror at being linked to someone else this tightly. Yet she had continued to reach out rather than thrust me aside. She had felt that I was betraying her trust, no, _known _I was betraying and using her, but what she saw had convinced her to strive to maintain the link.

Only now I felt it, a soft whisper of thought. Mine being answered, touching me in ways no one had ever done before. It should have been terrifying, but I had been doing the same clumsily with her thoughts all this time. How many times had she supported _me_ on this mission, and I had felt it, and ignored it. I had failed to break the link because part of me had been answering her feeling, and that part had not been willing to give it up.

I found myself kneeling with her, my head buried against her neck, hugging her tight enough to cause bones to creak, but she never wavered, her voice crooning softly to me. I couldn't hate her. I could never fight her. It would be like slicing off my own hands.

"I always had faith in you." She whispered, her lips brushing my cheek.

I opened my eyes, then suddenly spun, staring at the battle. The Republic fleet was being smashed before my eyes. "What have I done!" I wailed.

"You can help them." She said. She reached out, touching my face. "I must deal with other business."

"But I can help you!"

"Do you think you're strong enough to face Malak again?" She whispered gently.

I shook my head. It had been too easy to turn me to the dark side before. She must know my own strength, and my own weakness. "You are right. Go, I will help the Republic fleet as long as I can."

"Only if you promise me one thing. If you feel as if the Force has left you suddenly, run. Get to the ship. Get away."

"I don't understand."

"Trust me." She walked toward the door. She looked back, and gave a small wave. I knew she didn't expect to see me again.

I reached out, feeling the struggling Republic soldiers stand a little straighter. "I will be here when you return, my heart." I whispered.


	30. Victory

_Coruscant Glory_

"There!" Admiral Dodonna pointed. "A weakness in their left flank. Green squadron! Punch through!"

"On it!" Trev Collo replied. The Aleph class fighter jumped in his hands as he aimed at the Star Cruiser _Mammoth_. "All right guys! Let's rock!" Behind him, the seven remaining fighters of his squadron leaped into the fray. As they passed, the fighters blasted the huge ships. Trev detected the collapse of the gravity well generator aboard _Mammoth_, and shrieked with joy as his fighters punched through. Ahead of him a bare minute away was the Star Forge. He climbed sharply to make another run at _Mammoth_.

"We've broken through!"

"Understood." Dodonna's voice was still calm. No one had ever heard her any other way. The Ice Queen they called her. "Bastila is now assisting us with her battle meditation. Let's capitalize on it. Red Squadron, keep that hole open! All capital ships punch through and support the fighters!"

Like the behemoths they were the last capital ships of the fleet forged forward. There was only thirty odd left, and as they advanced, one fell out of formation, breaking up. Behind them the Sith fleet was pushing in, but if they could get through the gap and attack the Star Forge, the loss would be worth it.

Red squadron in the larger Crucis class assault fighters bored in. Their heavier guns ravened across _Mammoth_, and her sister ship _Gargantuan_. Both fell out of formation, air forming clouds like blood around them as the capital ships raced past them. Hundreds of Sith fighters came in, facing less Republic fighters now, but the Republic knew they could win. Even if every ship died in this system, they would win if they destroyed that huge suddenly fragile target before them.

Endgame

Danika

I had not mentioned it to Jolee, but after speaking to him in the mess hall, I had dreamed. I had seen him as I knew I had in reality when he taught his class when I was only six. I had seen someone who was an opposite image of Master Vrook, dark instead of light, his hair speckled with white rather than as it was now. He had been very circumspect in what he taught, and I had excelled in my studies after he left just for a chance to read his own Adventures when I was fifteen because after he had left, they had moved it to the restricted library.

What I had said in passing is pretty much what I had said when I was six, because the problem with history is not the subject, but the teacher. After he had left Vrook had taught it for a time, and if you wanted to know how stupid Padawan had failed in the past, he was excellent. But if you wanted to know _why_ something happened, ask someone who had been there; not some fool that 'assumed' they knew, or taught it by rote.

Suddenly I remembered two others that had taught me well. One was a woman named Marai Devos, A Padawan that had lived among the Mandalorians with her master for those last five years before they went to war with the Republic. She had come not to teach history, but to teach the way Mandalorian society worked. The class had been discontinued because the Council had already decided not to intercede. She had left less than a week later, but what she had taught rang in my mind.

After so many years of being taught that our lives were forfeit to _save_ the Republic, by what right had the Council decided not to help? Just before I had led my fellow Jedi in defiance of their edict, I had spoken again with Marai via the holonet. I had asked only one question; how would the Mandalorians react to the fumbling failure of the Republic? Her reply was only the first that had forced my hand.

Her reply was that the Mandalorians respected strength above all. That if they were not beaten, defeated by all the Republic's strength, they would fight until death to defeat the Republic. That had to include the Jedi, because until we foguth them, they would merely assume the Republic was only playing at it. When I asked if she would join me to fight them, her reply was simple. By everything we had been taught by those same masters that now stood by, she would.

I remembered the last of her time during that conflict even now. How she had lay upon a hospital bed after the hell of Malachor, and I did not feel her in the Force at all. The last of my wounded and beloved dead. Then, when I had returned from the Unknown Regions, and asked her to come back for the fight that was to come. But she had been a shattered shell of the woman I had known, and refused me.

The other had been the new librarian at Dantooine. What was her name? I had asked her what I should do, and her reply had been as she had said time and again. Know your enemy's heart, and you know his mind. Because you can never look upon an enemy as simply evil, because no one, no matter how vile, was wholly evil.

I had seen what she meant; judge them not by what you believe, but what _They_ believe. I had seen that Marai had been right. To the Republic, they were monsters that embraced war for over twenty millennia, but that time had shaped them, and to their mind, only the strong deserved to win, and if we did not defeat them decisively, it would merely fuel centuries of war until they won, or died to the last child.

As I ran on, I considered everything that lay before and behind. In so doing, I was struck by a revelation.

I had discovered the true secret of the Dark Side. Something so deep that even the others that had succumbed had never seen it. Something you could only find by first falling, then dragging yourself back out of the abyss.

The dark side is fear. Nothing else. The fear of being weak, so you fought to be strong. The fear of attachment to others, so you made few friends if any. The fear of being supplanted, so you trained only one apprentice. Even then, you watched for the day when that apprentice became strong enough to challenge you. If you timed it right, you remained the master. If not, you died. Even hate, anger and pride, all of which leads to the force comes down to fearing the unknown, or fear that you must fall, as the prideful always do.

Last the fear of death. You knew that when you returned to the Force, you would be added to the balance. It is what all who live and die know will happen. But those who can feel the Force know it on a deeper level. How can you be great in the Force in life without knowing this? When you died, your energy returned to that well spring. Would your life add to the balance or throw it off?

My own fall, when seen through that prism was simplicity itself. I had realized what I had been taught was more important than their orders at the last. When we had won, I knew the Council would never forgive us. For all of my beloved dead, by those reduced to shattered flesh and minds, by those who had somehow survived, I could not merely allow them to punish us for doing _exactly what we had been taught_!

Condemn a generation of Guardians for doing that? I had refused to return, and except for one, all of us had refused that order. Marai had been the only one who returned, and what did they do? They stripped her of the Force, punished her for every one of the 1400 that had died, been maimed, and the slim one hundred that had not. Because we had not returned as they wanted, she had suffered for us all!

They had proven unworthy of our devotion, as the Senate had not been worthy of our blood.

Originally I had intended to inform the Council about the Star Forge, but when they punished Marai, I felt that only by hiding it, and using it myself to save the Republic; simply to give those others that survived a chance to return home redeemed. I had not even worried about myself. They could have executed me, as the leader, and I would have bent my neck willingly. But the conversation I'd had that the Rakatan Computer spoke of had been before I initially reactivated it, looking for a way to protect the few of us that still lived. Before my own fall into darkness. I had known it would taint and destroy us, known that it would not work as I hoped. Yet in the end I had brought it back to hideous life.

Needing people already tainted, I had gone to the Sith. Using that librarian's meter they were not evil, merely misguided. But using the Star Forge had made them worse.

Again, fear compounding fear until I stood here today, fighting to stop what I had started in my own fear for those who had followed me.

In knowing this, I also knew the secret of the Jedi, and the Sith. One that only those that had already died knew.

For I had died. The person I was now was both Danika and Revan, but both of us had died before I was reborn.

The Jedi were not here to rule. They were not here to control. We knew that for millennia. They were here to maintain that balance, and that was where history, at least as I had been taught by the order was wrong. Too much of the light would be just as harmful as too much of the dark. There is and must always be a balance. Death must balance life, light must balance dark. Chaos must balance order, and freedom must balance oppression.

The entire Galaxy, probably the entire universe was a living entity, and we as people were not even large enough to be a virus in such a body. But we could infect it, Force help us, weaken it enough that something else could kill it if we weren't careful.

I looked at the Republic, and inwardly I smiled. So many worlds, so many views, so many struggles, for struggle is part of life, the Sith had that much right. But the struggle is not the reason for living. It is part of it, but never all. The struggle only defines what is won or lost. Every gambler knows that simple fact. You only went down or up. Tomorrow would be different. The galaxy was one massive game of Pazaak, and no one won or lost forever.

There was a deeper secret that I saw in the light. The Jedi that had joined

The Sith had not been banished to destroy them, they had been banished by the Force itself because the Sith who had lived then _were _the balance. As they lost battle after battle, some of the Jedi must have seen what would occur. The light would be triumphant. But in that it would destroy itself from within. They would forget that the dark was always there and the seeds of their own destruction would be planted. Or perhaps the Force, as any living thing, itself had assured that the dark would survive as needed.

The antipathy between us had almost been planned. The Sith hated the Jedi because we stood between them and the Republic. But by the same token, if the Jedi were to disappear, the Galaxy could die. As much as the Jedi had hated the Sith for two thousand years, _The Force itself had set us all upon this course!_

I knew now the answer to the ancient riddle. The Force was not a unifying entity, it was a living thing that struggled to survive as any living being did. It had a body a hundred thousand light years across we called the galaxy, but we were so tiny in comparison that we merely thought it was a slew of stars with the dust motes we called planets. It had created antibodies to protect itself from our own feeble attempts to damage it, and those were called the Jedi. But our own bodies created chemicals that limited it's own defenses, because in humans, an over active immune system was also called Leukemia, just as one that was too weak could not resist infection. It had created an enemy for us to face, and when either side was too strong, it fought back to maintain the balance.

Even the Sith code was ours, merely perverted. Both should end the same, though the Sith had forgotten that simple line.

_There is no death, only the Force. _To which, if anyone would believe me, I could add a line;

_ There is no dark, there is no light. There is only the Force._

It was so simple.

I stepped into a smaller room. Large matter transmitters were aimed at the six platforms around the room. I was curious, because it hadn't been here before. Of course the Star Forge could change and grow on command. Whatever it was for, it had been built because Malak wanted it. I knew the last passage to the upper observation deck lay around the corner, and I ran that way.

The door opened, and my lightsaber lit off. Malak stood there, two struggling Jedi hanging in the air behind him.

"Excuse me a moment." His lightsaber flashed in an arc at one of the Jedi, decapitating him, as he reached out with his empty hand, and the other man's neck snapped as he spun the head completely around. Then he slung the weapon. "I had some garbage to take care of." He finished the sentence as the bodies crumpled on the floor. He stopped five meters away, hands clasped behind his back.

"I tire of this farce, Revan. You have been a thorn in my side ever since I seized the mantle of dark Lord from your feeble grasp! But you made your last mistake when you came here. The Star Forge feeds my command of the dark side even as it weakens your grasp on the light! You are no match for me here, and this time you will not escape."

"I have no intention of escaping." I replied. "Surrender. The Jedi can heal you-"

"Heal me!" He laughed. "Is that what you call what they will do? You think stripping away your power and identity was merciful? I would rather die!"

"They saved me from the darkness, Malak. They can save you too, if you allow it."

Spoken like a true slave of the Jedi." He sneered. "Save your sermon, I have already had enough of it. You are an insignificant speck beneath my notice here. I have surpassed you in every way and found the last secret of the Star Forge, what you had not even imagined! You have no idea what you took over here, Revan. The Dark energy of the Force fills its very walls, the people below are it's food, supplying more energy with every birth and death."

"They can't use the Force." I murmured.

"They can't because all of it comes here. They are sucked dry of the Force even as the Star Forge grows stronger." He sighed. "But as I said, I will not deal with you. The Star Forge will do that for me. Enjoy it." The door between us slammed shut, and I spun around. The matter transmitters hummed, and light flashed down. But as I watched, it flickered and died. Curious, I went to one of the workstations.

CONSTRUCTION ABORTED. ALL RESOURCES ASSIGNED TO OTHER PROJECT.

I grinned. COUNT ON SHELTERS CONSTRUCTED. I typed in.

9,975,792,210,442,721. the computer replied. INCREASING TO 10,000,000,000,000,000 IN FIVE SECONDS

I chuckled, and opened the hatch. The inner hatch opened, and I saw Malak standing in the center of the Observation deck. Beyond the transparisteel I could see ships approaching, just pinheads from where we stood.

"I'm sorry your death trap isn't working. The Star Forge is... rather busy." I commented.

He turned, glaring at me. "What do you mean?" He snarled.

"I locked in a priority rush order for tents. Quite a few tents, actually."

"What?"

"Right now there should be enough tents that every man woman and child in the Republic can live in their own personal tent, with enough to go camping somewhere else if they're of a mind." I shrugged. "You never can have too many."

He seemed amused. "Well done. I had thought I removed your access. It seems I should have checked more carefully. I see that you retained more control over the dark side than I might have imagined. You are strong. Stronger than you were when you were the Dark Lord. I didn't think it was possible."

"The Force is the Force. There is no difference between the Dark and the light in strength." I replied.

"I am almost tempted to capture you instead of killing you, Revan. Breaking your will as I did with Bastila would be merely a matter of time. You would make a far better asset that she could be. By the by, what ever happened to Bastila?"

"She is using her battle meditation to help the Republic now."

"No matter. They have less than thirty capital ships remaining. I still have over a hundred. They will die here, and my fleet will destroy the Republic they can no longer defend.

"I wonder. Would it be worth the effort to make you my apprentice? Perhaps not. You are already too powerful for me to guarantee that you would remain the apprentice for long."

"I will never serve the Dark side again."

"Foolish words. I have known you since you were a child old friend. The Dark and the Light has fought over you all your life. The balance is tipped toward the light for now. But you will tip the other way again eventually.

"Savior, conqueror, hero, villain. You have been all those things, Revan, and yet you are nothing. In the end you belong to neither the light nor the darkness. You will forever stand alone." He sighed. There was only one thing you could never be."

_ Think of the power an unrequited love could generate in your soul _Bastila had said.

Looking at him, his eyes cold in hate, I realized how much of what was happening now in this room was my fault. He had been the older brother I depended on when I first arrived, a frightened girl of six looking up to the ten year old who had started his Jedi training at my age. He had been the friend I admired when I was assigned to his class, when I had begun to outreach him in the Force all those years ago, I only fourteen, he eighteen and a man worth admiring. we had played together, trained together, gone swimming in the lake near the Academy as unashamed as only children could be. Hugged each other when I had a nightmare, slept in each others arms for warmth and comfort as apprentices, and later as Padawan on our first missions.

He had felt more, wanted so much more, but had never said so. The Jedi teach that love is something that cannot be focused on just one thing, it must be given unsparingly to all. Love of all men if you will, rather than love of a man. He had wanted so much more, but I had been blind to it then.

Then the war had come. We had been friends, family in all but flesh, and I had grown to love him, not only for what he did in the name of the Republic, but as the man he was.

If only we had allowed what our bodies wanted then, we wouldn't be enemies now. But it hadn't happened.

When I had turned to the dark, he had followed, not out of need, but out of love for me. When he had lost his jaw at Trantor not long after Telos he must have thought it bothered me. I had come to see him in the kolto tank, and turned away. From repugnance, he probably thought. But I had turned away because I had never kissed those full lips as a woman would kiss a man in passion, and now never would. Never felt his arms around me in an embrace that wasn't for support or warmth. Never felt his flesh against mine since we were children.

It wasn't until his injury that I suddenly realized that I had yearned for that pleasure, now torn away from me. I had hurt more at that moment than I had from every wound I had taken before, and I knew, more than I had suffered since. I might have offered him my love then, but I had not. He would have seen it as pity, and hated me for it.

If I had been wholly in the dark I could have ended his life then, but I loved him still, and more desperately than before. Instead I made sure he was as well as he could be before assigning him again. I had given him his own ship, offered him his own fleet! Not to separate us as he might have thought, but to give him space to grow beyond that injury. Part of me might have hoped that he would, that one day he would accept what I yearned to offer.

Instead his love had festered, and when it was possible, had struck me down. That explained his rage at Taris, at Dantooine. He could not have me, and refused to let others have what he could not. If he could, he would have fed the entire galaxy into the Star Forge, including himself. As long as he assured that I went into the furnace before him.

I had known him for eleven years then, and I had known in all that time that he had an enormous capacity for love, but as large a one for hate.

Since he could not enjoy the one, he had indulged the other.

"I believe in redemption for all I care about, Malak. That still includes you."

"Of course you do." He spoke as if to a child. "It is all the Jedi masters left you. Fate and destiny have conspired to have you destroy the Galaxy, then to save it. You have been thrust into the role of savior again, and I must fight you because this is all I have left.

"Once again we face each other in mortal combat. This time only one of us leaves here alive. But first, say hello to my guests." He motioned, and a series of cylinders slid up into the room. I looked at one, and my blood ran cold. Belaya hung there, peaceful as if in death. But I could still feel her life force. Zhar, a few others I didn't know by name, but remembered from the Academy.

"What have you done?" I asked in horror.

"I told you the Star Forge was alive. In many ways it needs to be fed like any animal. The Rakata weaken. Within perhaps ten years they will die out as a race because of it. But there are other sources of power. While you were busy running around defeating and conquering, I spent my convalescence studying the Star Forge.

"When you sent captured Jedi here, to be sent on to the Trayus Academy, I used some of them in experiments, and discovered that with these simple tubes, I can draw the Force through them to fuel the machine.

"Every Jedi that would not submit, every Sith that disobeyed my orders or angered me has been encased in cylinders like these, scattered through the entire station since I deposed you. They have become parts of this machine, and it feeds off their energy. Disposable parts that are replaced as they wear out."

He spun, waving at the cylinders. "Look around you! These are the Jedi that fell at Dantooine. Dead in every way save one. They cannot return to the Force. I have stayed their decomposition, and they draw the Force from the Galaxy to feed themselves instinctively. And in so doing, they power the Star Forge for me.

"And I have discovered more. I can drain their Force into myself, making myself stronger with every life, making me immortal. Once I have finally beaten you, I will add you to my collection, and you will fuel my conquests! I shall rule forever!"

I felt a part of my mind reel, but in the same instant, I understood why Ajunta Pall had gifted me. I had instinctively used one of the many powers he had gifted me with when I had sent his spirit on. I reached out, and I felt the lives of all those trapped people. Not just the dozen or so here, but hundreds no, _thousands_ trapped between death and life throughout the station. I felt the life force, and gathered it to me as I had with Ajunta Pall.

The bodies spasmed eyes open and screaming, then I felt them slacken throughout the station in true death.

"What have you done!" He screamed as he saw the bodies collapse. I smiled, and held out my hand. A glowing ball arced up, then sprayed the room with sparks. Every one someone now freed forever. One of them floated before me, and I heard Zhar's voice.

_Well done, my beloved daughter._

Malak screamed, and he caught me with an angry hand instead of the Force, slamming me into the wall. "I will still win the day!"

"No." I held out my other hand. In it was the grenade I had made. I triggered it and there was a blinding flash that flung us apart. I had wondered when I heard of Marai's exile, what it would feel like to have the Force ripped from you.

It was worse than I had imagined.

Picture having every cell of your body suddenly explode, but you're alive to feel it. I screamed in agony, and knew even as it happened that every ship in the system, every being in every ship was feeling it. Every being on the planet feeling it. Perhaps everywhere in the Galaxy. For those used to the Force, it was bad. For the two of us at it's center, it was sheer agony that seemed to never end.

I found myself kneeling, shaking my head to clear it. Across the room Malak was trying to get back on his feet. "What madness is this?"

"I always wanted to defeat the Jedi, not destroy them." I gasped. I could stand, but I was shaky. "Before I reactivated the Star Forge, I had asked the main computer on the Rakata home world for a way to neutralize the Force. It didn't want to tell me."

The Star Forge staggered, and I could hear metal sheering somewhere. One of the transparisteel windows fractured in a crazy pattern, but didn't burst.

"It designed a grenade that neutralizes all of the Force within its blast area. That was what you just felt."

"What is the blast area?" He staggered, and steadied himself.

"I don't know." I admitted. " Farther than this room obviously. A few light seconds, maybe the entire system." I shrugged. "Possibly the entire galaxy."

"You, you fool!"

"Perhaps. But think of this. On Tatooine we found the wreckage of Rakata ships, but the metal has proven worthless because it is maintained by the energy ofStar Forge. It doesn't have the strength of forged metal, and collapses rapidly. Even now 30,000 years of history is catching up with everything constructed here." I pointed out the armorplast. A Sith fighter had been flying by, followed by an Aleph. It had made a sharp turn to evade, and collapsed as if the main supports had vanished. "How much of the armada you're using now for your conquests, that we built, came from here? That cannot even be repaired, except by using the Star Forge?"

He screamed and charged me, lightsaber humming. I blocked, and I could see in his eyes the loss of all his dreams. Even if he killed me now, I had beaten him. He cut again and again, and I blocked him. He had been my equal with a lightsaber before, but he hadn't been fighting for his life every second of the last months. All I needed to do was wait.

I struck, and knew he was dying. Yet instead of striking again, I dove forward frantically catching his body as he began to fall. His lightsaber fell, and his hands once so strong, so sure, weakly pawed at me as he tried to breathe. I lowered him to the deck, holding his head up, looking into his eyes.

The Star Forge shuddered. The fleet had begun pounding it, shattering a structure older than time itself, and I didn't care that I was inside that target. All I cared about was the fragile life slipping through my hands.

He looked up, and for the first time in years, I saw actual pleasure. "Revan." He whispered.

"Forgive me old friend. No. Forgive me, my love." I whispered back, tears falling onto his face.

"All these years." He husked. "I yearned to hear those words. Too late, Revan. Too late."

"No my love." I held him against my bosom, caressing his head. "I wanted to hold you like this for so long. But the war came between us, then the dark side did. When I realized that fact, I wanted to give myself freely, but you felt that I was repulsed by your condition." I touched the metal gorget he had worn all this time. "I wanted to show you that I loved the man you had been. The man you had become. That I had always loved you. But you would have thought I pitied you."

His eyes looked confused. "Then..?"

I nodded, kissing his cheek.

"You know what I regretted most?" I asked. He looked even more confused. "At first that I never kissed you while you still had lips. But now I regret that I never bore our children."

His eyes understood my pain, then regret. "A waste." He whispered. "My life, all I have done. A waste."

"No my love, you were part of the balance as I was."

"Still... spouting the wisdom of the Jedi, I see. Maybe there is more truth in their code than I ever believed. I... I cannot help but wonder, Revan. What would have happened had our positions been reversed? What if fate had decreed the Jedi would capture me instead? Could I have returned to the light, as you did? If you had not led me down the dark path in the first place, what destiny would I have found?"

"I wanted to be Master of the Sith and ruler of the galaxy. But that destiny was not mine, Revan. It might have been yours, perhaps... but never mine. And in the end, as the darkness takes me, I am nothing."

"No my love. I know the true secret of the Force. The Dark and the Light." I bent down and whispered in his ear.

While he no longer had a mouth, I could see the idea made him want to smile. "How droll." He reached up, and I caught his hand, holding it against my face long after the muscles had gone slack.

_Coruscant Glory_

"What the hell was that?" Admiral Dodonna shook her head. She felt as if someone had smacked her in the forehead with a four kilo hammer. She staggered to her feet, looking around. Master Vandar lay in a heap, shuddering.

"Master-"

"I will be well. Fight your battle, Admiral." A soft weak voice ordered.

"Damage report!"

"None from that blast, Admiral." A lieutenant reported. "We have half a dozen in sickbay complaining of severe headaches, but only the Jedi seem to have been really hit by it."

"The damn thing keeps coming up with more things to hit us with, and I for one am sick of it!" Dodonna pointed. "Take us in!"

The ship turned, and her guns punched into a frigate. Everyone gasped as the ship came apart as if it were a badly assembled toy.

"What is going on here?" She screamed. No one answered. "Send to all ships, close on the Star Forge upper structure."

Danika

I watched the approaching ships, knew that I was going to die, and was content. This battle, the war, all of the death had all been my fault. It was I that led my comrades into the Darkness, taking my best friend and first love with me. I had dragged him over into the darkness, never requited his passion for me, never born his children, been beaten by the Jedi. In so doing betrayed the Sith I had led into the slaughter. Then in turn had failed Bastila. Failed the Republic. How many billions could point to me and say 'she caused our deaths'?

I had failed in everything.

I pulled out the package I had taken from Korriban, the Ebon sword of Ajunta Pall, and laid it on Malak's chest, clasping his hands on the hilt. I had promised to have it destroyed, and from the look of the ships approaching, that was guaranteed.

"Danika, Report." _Carth. I'm sorry, Carth. I betrayed your trust by being who I am. I must atone._

"My Mand'alor, answer." _Your entire race I have failed. Pick someone who won't fail you._

"Danika?" _Mission the sister I never knew I needed. Be well, live long, have children._

"Danika." I heard Bastila's voice. "Please, don't make me go through life alone again." I sobbed. Of all of them this call I wanted to answer. _I'm sorry, Bastila. The blood of billions of dead is on my hands, on both sides. I can't live with that. Please, think well of me._

"_Amma Mata_?" I spun. Sasha squirreled out of a vent, and ran to me. She caught my arm pulling frantically. "Come!" She said in Mando'a.

"You go my love." I whispered, turning back to that beloved body. "I have something I have to do first."

"No! You come with me now!" She begged.

I looked down into that still face. So peaceful now. I couldn't bear to look away. "Go on. I'll be with you in a moment."

"I can't." She said. "The vents have collapsed. I don't know the way." She cuddled against me. "I'm scared."

I burst into tears, holding her as I stood. I failed one more time on that day.

I didn't die.

As we fled the Star Forge, I saw it for what it was. The Rakata had been that first race reaching for the Force. They had used it, and like any unsupervised child had abused it. Their abilities had not disappeared. They had been suppressed. The plagues had been the Force striking back at them, balancing the Galaxy in the quickest manner possible. Like a surgeon saving the life at the cost of good flesh.

The Star Forge had merely added to their pain, drawing away all of the Force before they could even learn to use it. That they had survived at all was testament to the fact that they still had a place here in this galaxy among us. Now their crowning achievement was falling to pieces before our very eyes, from millennia of torment, freeing them at last . A section of ladder someone had installed broke away as the wall behind it fell into dust as we climbed down. Still I strove to save Sasha.

No one had ever dreamed of such a structure, powered both by machinery and the Force except for them. No one would ever do so again. I knew the inner workings of that creation, and I vowed that nothing like it would ever be built again. I would place my records in the archives. But what I knew, what I remembered, the surveys done by Malak and I before the Sith arrived, that I would take to my grave. Even the existence of the Star Forge must become a legend nothing more, I would assure that only those that were worthy would ever know of the truth.

I finally found a lift shaft that hadn't collapsed, and felt the car hurtle downward.

How would I choose who was worthy? I wouldn't. The Force would.

_Coruscant Glory_

"All ships target the stabilizer at grid 411." Admiral Dodonna ordered. There were only 20 capital ships left, but they had more than enough firepower to finish the job. Blasters ripped into the oddly fragile metal, tearing deep into the structure. A transparisteel panel on an upper deck shattered, and the air within belched out, carrying a man's body. His hands had been locked around a sword of some kind. Dodonna shook her head, smiling, but then looked around to make sure no one had seen it.

The stabilizer tower shattered, and as it did the Star Forge began sinking toward the star.

"All right, let's get out of here!" Dodonna shouted. The capital ships clawed for separation. There were a dozen ships waiting for them. "Where's the enemy fleet?" She demanded.

"A lot of them ran, Admiral." The sensor officer reported. Those ones..."

As he stopped talking, fighters were pouring over the enemy frigates, all, she noticed of alien manufacture. One shattered like a crystal goblet under fire. Another struck its colors, signaling its surrender. The others ran. The fighters harried them.

"Admiral." She turned. Vandar was sitting up, holding his head.

"Are you all right now?"

"The battle?"

"Somehow we won. The enemy ships were starting to come apart. I don't know how to explain it."

"I think I know who to ask. Where is the _Ebon Hawk_?"

"Sir?" She walked over to the sensor officer. _Ebon Hawk _wasn't on her screen.

_Ebon Hawk_

Carth

Something happened. The Jedi all screamed, and collapsed, and we had one hell of a time getting them aboard the ship and holding off attacks at the same time. A short while after that Bastila and the other Jedi of our team staggered in. But of Sasha and Danika, we had no trace. I called her. Canderous called her Mission called her. Even Bastila called her. But there was no reply. Bastila seemed to be taking it the worst. She had collapsed, crying, shaking her head when we questioned her.

"She wants to die." She finally got out. "She expects to die, and thinks... she thinks she deserves to die. That is why she won't talk to us."

I stormed out onto the deck, thumbing my com unit. "Danika, answer or so help me-"

"So help you what?" I spun. Danika was walking toward me, holding Sasha in her arms. I whooped, charging at her. She set the girl down just in time to avoid having her crushed as I picked her up in a bear hug.

Behind me I could hear shouting, and Bastila leaped past me. Danika turned as if she had known what would happen, and caught the smaller woman in a hug.

"You are never leaving me, Danika." Bastila looked up, and I was astonished by the joy in her eyes. "Never! Do you hear me?"

"All right already." Danika replied.

Mission was there, and Danika hugged her wordlessly. She nodded to Canderous, then motioned. "Can we all get out of here before we find out what the inside of a star feels like?"

We ran aboard, and Bastila and I took our stations. The ship shuddered, staggering into the air, and spun on her thrusters, punching through the force field and into space. We were closer to the star than I would ever want to be, and the glare almost blinded us. I climbed frantically, and watched the sensor behind us. The Star Forge sheared, the lower half suddenly buckling and falling away as the upper part spun madly. Then it was gone into the star as if it had never been.

"Where is everybody?" Mission asked. "All I am getting is a lot of small returns. Wreckage, a lot of wreckage."

"Maybe they're dead." I turned to see Danika standing behind us. "It would be just my luck."

"Now don't-" I started.

"_Ebon Hawk_, this is _Coruscant Glory_. Standby for Admiral Dodonna."

"I expected her to survive." I chuckled. "Never thought the Ice Queen would even get scratched."

"Well a little scratched Carth." The admiral's voice replied dryly. "Finally I found out what you lower ranks called me all these years." She chuckled in delight. "How are you down there?"

"Something big knocked out the Jedi. We had to drag them aboard. The Jedi from our team are all aboard. In fact, I don't think we lost anybody."

"Understood. Stand by for Master Vandar."

"I will speak to Revan." He said.

"Danika Wordweaver here, Master." Danika replied. "We all know Revan is dead."

"As you will." He answered. "What happened to Bastila?"

"Other than having been suborned, redeemed, and getting bonded in truth to me? Why nothing, Master."

There was a long silence. "And the affect of the weapon?"

"I don't know, Master." She admitted. "I don't know the range, power or

cumulative effect of it. Perhaps we will regain the use of the Force. Perhaps not." She shrugged though he couldn't see that. "But I submit that it crippled the Sith facing the fleet, and allowed them the victory." She rubbed Bastila's neck.

"I think it a fair trade."

"Such a weapon must never be made ever again."

"Master, I destroyed all records as I went, and the only device that can make such a weapon is falling into the sun as we speak. I promise you that."

"It was not your decision to make. But done is done. Bastila must be retrained-"

"Master, unless you want me there as well, I suggest you rethink that." Danika broke in. "I am protective of those I love."

"You always were." He grunted. "Meet us on the planet. Much there is to do yet."

"On our way." I called.

Recessional

Danika

The temple had not seen such a crowd in millennia. Hundreds had gathered. Humans, Twi-lek, Rodians. To one side stood a group of the Elders, and with them grim faced Mandalorians.

Master Vandar stood with the Admiral as she prepared for the ceremony. I would have preferred to relax with a glass of Tihaar among the Mando'a, but Bastila would have none of it. While preparing for the ceremony, we had discussed it at length. "We are being honored, my love. Better to be there than to appear to be sulking."

I am not sulking." I groused, brushing Sasha's hair, then braiding it with economic skill. "I just would rather have some Tihaar and relax than have to stand around like a prize animal at a market." I chuckled at a sudden vision. "If the medal says 'Best of Show", I am going to misbehave."

"Hush." Bastila draped her arm over my neck, nuzzling against me. "We have to decide about Sasha. They will want to train her."

"Why not?" I asked. I turned her around. My hairstyle on that small head should have looked silly. But she had her own presence. "Our girl can do anything. As long as she learns to clean up after herself."

"I couldn't use a broom on the _Leviathan_." She chirped back.

"Don't get cheeky with me, young lady." I admonished.

"I am no lady." She retorted. "I am daughter of a farmer, was slave of a Mandalorian, and am daughter presumptive of a Jedi!" She retorted.

"Daughter presumptive?" Bastila asked confused.

"She's been calling me _Amma Mata_ for months now. Don't you know what it means?"

"Mandalorian is very difficult, and the Goodar dialect doubly so." She closed her eyes. "Person I-" Her eyes opened. "Person I accept as my mother?"

"Close enough." She was calling me the equivalent of 'stepmother' all that time, and you didn't know!" I caroled.

"Enough. What does that make me?" Bastila asked tartly.

"_Amma tu che Mata_?" Sasha answered grinning.

Bastila mentally ran through it. "The not-so-nice stepmother? Wait! The wicked stepmother! Oh, no, I am not going to- Danika will you stop laughing! Sasha there must be..."

All that was behind us now. The door of the temple stood open, and I gloried in the feeling of the Force again. The effect had not been permanent, but I stood by what I had told master Vandar. It would have been worth the loss for the victory.

The Admiral was all set to give a speech, but I stepped up to her. "Please, there is something more important to do first." I whispered.

"There can't be!" She waved toward the medal boxes on a tray her aide carried. "We've won a great battle, and you say there is something more _important_ than that?"

"Yes, Admiral. An entire race needs to regain their honor." She looked confused, and I stepped past her, leaping up on the edging stones of the ramp. "_Mando'a! Hala! Macht Che-na_!" I shouted.

The Mando'a around the One stiffened, and their clan chief ran forward.

"No, all of you!" I roared in Basic. The other Mando'a looked at each other confused. Then they marched forward. The Republic troops muttered and backed away.

"ALL!" I roared. About a quarter of the humans among the Republic Forces came forward. Not all of the Mandalorians had become mercenaries. They gathered before me at the edge of the ramp.

"As Mand'alor, I took your honor. For services to myself, to the Republic, and to the Rakatan people, I give it back, as you deserve." I said. The crowd below me stiffened.

"Canderous Ordo of Clan Ordo, come forth!" He came forward, and I motioned toward the stones at my feet. "You took cleansing the honor not only of your clan but others upon yourself. I say that no man deserves to be Mand'alor more than you." He stared at me in amazement. "That is once I am done."

The Mandalo'a at my feet roared at that. "Makiel Suuchin of Clan Lembat!" He stepped forward. "You are now Makiel Suuchin of Clan Suuchin. All that remain of your people on this planet shall bear your clan name with honor. Do any deny me?"

"I only ask." Konrad Morgo of clan Shoomart said. The local Mandalorians groaned.

"What is it this time, Konrad?'

"Should we not be Clan Wordweaver?" The others looked at him then at me intently.

"Konrad, you are the most irritating man I have ever had the misfortune to meet!" I motioned for them to go away. "Choose among yourselves. Your Mand'alor will be there when we are done." They retreated bickering. Sasha giggled. "Nothing from you, little girl!"

"If I may?" Admiral Dodonna asked sarcastically.

"I apologize, Admiral." I bowed to her. She shook her head ruefully, then looked at Master Vandar as if to say 'She's your problem'. Then she turned.

"We come to honor the heroes of the battle fought over our heads. It shall be called the Battle of Lehon after those that have asked to join the Republic." She motioned toward the Elders. One by one we stepped forward, each bowing to accept our medals. Republic Crosses, the second highest award. The Droids went first, each accepting the medals with a bit of confusion. Then Mission and Zaalbar together. She had threatened to dump a ton of unprocessed Kolto on the proceeding if they ignored Zaalbar and our droids, and I had worried more that she might actually carry out the threat than where she might have gotten it. Then Juhani, Canderous and Jolee. Canderous took it as he did everything, stoically. But I could see the gleam in his eyes. When he died, he expected to be in that front rank of that heavenly army.

Finally Carth Bastila and I stepped forward together. The Admiral smirked, and reached. "For the leaders of this endeavor, we have Senate Medals of Valor." She leaned down. The highest award that can be offered, she had to get the Senate's permission to even consider issuing them. She motioned, and we knelt. The only medal for valor you had to accept on bended knee.

A tradition I understood, because all but ten had been posthumous. With the award came a lifetime stipend, and the honor of having everyone whatever their rank right up to Chancellor bowing to you first. I felt the ribbon drop, the medal hitting between my breasts. As I stood, I saw Carth's face begging to be anywhere else. Bastila merely bowed her head as if remembering as I did all those that had died to earn it.

"Our heroes!" The Admiral shouted. The crowd roared, and we gathered on the edge of the ramp, waving like idiots.

"And the redemption of the fallen." Vandar said. I winked at him, and he solemnly returned it.

Most of the modern ships had escaped the battle, several of the Rakata designed ships had also fled. Reports said the Sith advance had stopped, and nw had begun to withdraw. We hadn't won the war yet, just set our toes and shoved the darkness back a pace. Would anything we had done matter?

Who cared? We had won the breathing space.

_ There is no dark, there is no light. There is only the Force._

End

A brief Aside.

If you go over to Lucasforums in the Coruscant Entertainment Center, you will find I started my time in fan fiction there. As mentioned in the intro to this, I had written it back in 2005, and originally posted merely snippets as a thread entitled KOTOR Excerpts. After about three years of trying to find an agent, I finally just posted the entire bloody thing, going back to where I had begun and posting in sequence. In fact this work you have read is different from that one, because a writer, as Michelangelo admitted about the Mona Lisa, is never satisfied, and wants to tweak it forever. Check that work out to see what I mean.

A reader posted this to this story here:

The Echani are a result of genetic tampering by the Arkanians, resulting in the entire Near-human species to have nearly identical appearances. This made it impossible for them to know each other base entirely on looks, so they developed a culture that used body language and violence as a form of communication, as scars and the way you carry yourself become their identity. At least, this is what I've understood and sued in my own story.

My reply to that comment deserved a response all of you should see and is (Slightly edited) as follows:

'While that is what is said now, when I wrote this (In fact I had finished my TSL novel _and_ two pre Republic novels long before this 'explanation of the Echani' was written.) there was no mention at all in the Wookiepedia about the Echani. Your argument is similar to using one statement in the Bible (The crowd of maybe a hundred or two) accepting the blood guilt for the execution of Jesus, and that blames the entire nation (later used by the Nazis to give them the justification for the Concentration camps) among others to blame all of the Jews for that death.'

Addenda to the last: After reading the above, I remembered an old TV show named Buck Rogers, and especially the very bad second season. In the Episode 'The Dorian Secret', you have a human society where everyone wears masks, and it is believed that it is because of radiation scars from a decades old war. However it is later revealed that it is because a genetic mutation has made the entire race look exactly identical, and they wear the masks to stop themselves from going insane.

There is also inside the SW Universe, the Lorrdians; who had been conquered by another race centuries earlier and had been denied under penalty of death from speaking aloud. They developed sign language and mimicry to a high art as a language. If you haven't read it, that is Han Solo's Revenge.

I'm not sure which of these the author of that 'explanation of the Echani' read or saw first, but isn't it awfully familiar?

Final note. This is the end of the story, but as Bilbo Baggins said, it is only the end of one story, because stories have a mind of their own. There will be one further post, but it is for those of you that want to understand the provenance of Return From Exile, my KOTOR: TSL novel.

When I started writing them both, I used my own love of military history as the background, so there are brief glimpses of our own past through their eyes.

I am posting it here because I don't want to have to put in 'if you hated history in school, you can just go on to the story' as chapter 1. Most of the hits on any thread are on the first chapter, and while I might get a lot of them, it isn't fair to those who refuse to accept the Quote from Tacitus:

'Those who refuse to learn from history, are doomed to repeat it'.

I have my own version I used in another story of mine:

'Those who refuse to learn from history, are only doomed to repeat it if they are lucky. If they are not lucky, all they fought for dies along with them, and good riddance'.


	31. So I lied A teaser from Return From Exi

To end this, a peek at the book you have not seen yet. The speech given by Marai to the men who are going to defend Khoonda on Dantooine:

I went over, looking for my spot. The door opened, and the Administrator came out, followed by Vrook. She started to speak, but then stopped as the men came. They were filthy from digging in, tired because we had worked all night to get ready. Somehow I knew that if I failed in what I was about to do, they would run at the first shot. I motioned for the Administrator to stand aside.

I stood up on the edge of the planter, looking down at them. For a long time, the grumbling had continued, but as they noticed my silent regard, they fell silent. 200 men. That was all we had, and the enemy were a thousand or more.

"For those of you who have never seen me or my face, I am Marai Devos. I just wanted for you all to see that I am not three meters tall, covered with fur, and feeding on my own dead."

There was a little laughter out there.

"Too often a leader will stand there, and impugn your manhood, or exhort you to stand because your families are in there." I hooked a thumb toward the docking bays of the tiny spaceport. "They'll tell you that you will be shrouded in glory, that your sacrifice will be remembered forever. I'm not going to do that. If the truth is not what you want to hear, I'll find someone to lie to you.

"The odds are bad. We are outnumbered by five to one, and they are better armed. They have assault droids, and we don't. They are trained professionals, and you're just a bunch of guys trying to add to your take home pay. Glory? It doesn't put food on the table, or protect your children. Honor? While I put store in my personal honor I have never been given a centi-cred because I hold to it. Does that pretty much cover the totally screwed position we're in?"

"Damn straight." Someone whispered. I looked down at him, grinning. 'Good. Hate to be so terrified if I had no reason." There was another chuckle. "Yeah, you're scared but I've got a secret for you. So am I. I fought an entire war with that fear inside me every second. So when I speak, I'm not the hero on a podium, or the monster I am painted. I am a frightened human being right now people, just like you. Join the club.

"Did you know that I was offered a way out of this? The commander of those men told me personally that if I would bugger your defenses, that if I was willing to sacrifice all of you men, that your families would be safe. He also told me that if I didn't help him, none of you would live. That he would slaughter you all down to the last child.

"Yet I am here with you now.

"Except to those that survive, this battle will be a footnote in history. We will fight and die, and a hundred years from now some fool will make it a punch line for a bad political joke. There will be no parades, no days named in your honor. Anyone who doesn't want to fight can run, and I won't stop you. Anyone willing to let their families live that kind of life with them has my blessing to take a skimmer and get the hell out of here.

"But I will tell you right now, that I will be staying."

I jumped down, walking among them. "We don't fight for territory here. We fight for your homes, and your families. I have a ship in there." I pointed again at the spaceport. "I could have gotten out of here, and to tell you the truth, part of me wanted to cower aboard and see the last of Dantooine. I want to see tomorrow as much as any of you, but the other part of me thinks of you men, your children, your wives, your brothers and sisters left in their hands. Part of me says, if I will not die to defend these people, what world is important enough to die for?

"So run if you want. I will not live to see your families killed. I will not drink in the Cantina somewhere safe and remember those dead. I will either live to drink those toasts with them, or I won't live at all. It's that simple."

They were silent, staring at me. My words were so soft that those at the back leaned forward to hear. "My friends may run. I may be the only one standing here when they come, but I swear before all the gods of man, I will be here. Your society may die, but I. Will. Be. Here. So if you want to run, start now. I don't know how long I will live. But that building-" I pointed at the fragile structure. "-That hope for your home and very way of life is where I stand and die."

I walked back to where I had stood before, but instead I sat down. "So if you're going to run, do it. I have work to do before they come."

They stood there then suddenly there was a roar. Men waved their guns, screaming. I heard my name used and I raised my hand. "No! Do not go to war with my name on you lips." I leaped back up. "Home!" I screamed.

They repeated it, and it became a chant. No one was running, the faces had lost that fear, and a terrible resolve had taken its place.

"Stations, people. Be careful, may the Force watch over you all."

It's not the St Crispin speech from Henry the V, just the best I could do.


	32. Warning! Serious History!

If you do not like History, close this now. I warned you in the final post of Genesis, then in the title, and I am not warning you again!

Every negative comment about what is taught or happened is fact you can verify if you are willing to actually look it up. The one argument I had with an antiwar lunatic that cracked me up was when he replied 'It may be fact, but that doesn't make it the truth!'

Think about it, then if you're still not sure why it was so damn funny, look up the words fact and truth, then get back to me.

My late mother was an interesting person. Like myself, she was a writer, and instead of merely answering a question (Mom, why is the sky blue?) her reply was always, 'If you wanna know, read a book for Christ's sake!'. The first time I asked about dinosaurs, read a book, why the Nazis were so bad, read a book. Should I hate others because of their skin color? That was a talk right up there with the birds and the bees.

I can thank my mother for an eclectic reading regimen I have followed ever since, and for me getting my butt kicked by my older sister because I called her a Diplodocus. Twice actually, when she found out the name means 'double beam' as in wide load...

I have always loved history, and made military history something I studied on my own. One reason, is as I said in Genesis, history is only interesting if you hear it from people who lived it. The other reason was even at eleven, I knew we couldn't have been right every time we got into a war, and one of my grade school history teachers repeated an old quote that made me curious; '_History is written by the winners_'.

Take it from someone who has studied it longer than most of you have been alive; not counting the Revolution there were only three wars we fought in our history were we were wholly in the right; as in it needed to be fought, and the bad guys were definitely wrong. PM me, and I'll tell you which. The list might surprise you. I'll warn you now, only one of them was fought in the last century.

Modern history taught in junior high school up until college has as much in common with what happened as a fairy tale does to real life. Part of the problem is the process for when new textbooks are chosen.

The public, meaning the citizens, have a say in it, and every jot and tittle of a new text can be challenged. As an actual example you can look up, the Mississippi board of education (Followed by their state legislature) decided to claim that all of our history prior to the War Between the States was a fabrication created by those damn Yankees. That slavery had never been widespread, and it was all a lie. They passed a law, then ordered the libraries and schools to strike all such references in texts. So Uncle Tom's Cabin among other works were removed from the shelves to keep their children from learning about it.

Don't laugh! They did the same in the mid 19th century deciding that Pi is exactly three to make it easier for kids to study Math.

Add to that the fact that the people who teach history before the college level are rarely well versed in it, and are told to follow the text book.

When I wrote Return From Exile, I made a Jedi that still remembered the carnage of her war, unlike Revan. When I posted Dxun Memories here (in 2010, two years after I did at Lucasforums) I received only two reviews. One pretty much accused me of creating a Mary Sue, because Marai was more knowledgeable about ground tactics, and the Mando'a in general.

I had a reason for that. I see Revan as a tactical genius, but as a Naval Officer. Marai was, and is a ground pounder. Two different skill sets. Follow on here.

The US Marines who are still the premier group on this planet when it comes to hostile landings knows exactly how bad it can be when you hit a hostile shore. Just look at every landing in the Pacific from Guadalcanal to Inchon. While technically part of the US Navy, they have been their own service most of the last century, just expecting the bus driver (The Navy) to deliver them to their destination, and supply the tools of the trade when they did. The Navy buys their equipment, and as WEB Griffin points out in the Corps Series, it means after the Navy gets everything they need, the Marines get their needs met.

Like still still manufacturing and issuing the Springfield '03 while the Army had already proven the Garand. Of course that meant they ended up with the Brewster Buffalo the Navy no longer wanted instead of the F4F-3 Wildcat on Midway. 13 out of 20 Buffalo pilots died facing the Zero while four of the six pilots in the Wildcats there scored kills, (along with a lot of those Buffalo pilots as one final sacrifice) and more importantly, made it back to fight another day. The commander of the Marine pilots at Midway didn't climb into one of the Wildcats. Major Floyd Parkes went into battle leading the others in a Buffalo, and according to the Official Naval History, was one of the first American pilots (Perhaps the only one in truth, after all that history is propaganda) to be strafed in his parachute after bailing out. They also had to wait during Guadalcanal for the Army to reinforce them in October of 1942 before they finally had tanks.

But before WWII, landing on a hostile shore had been something the Navy did because sometimes they had to, not because it was their primary mission. If that doesn't make sense, watch or read the Hornblower Series (I'd suggest the British TV series to get the 'this is a Marine landing?' out of your system). In fact there was only two major landings by the USMC before WWII, One was at Veracruz to seize the dock to allow the Army troops transported to be unloaded in the Mexican-American war and the other was Tripoli (As in the first line of the hymn, From the Halls of Montezuma to the Shores of Tripoli), when the Marines landed to take the city from the land side to end that war (1803). It wasn't until half way through WWII that the Navy actually started teaching their officers more than 'go here, and drop the troops' at Annapolis. Case in point what I patterned Dxun on. Operation Pestilence, the Guadalcanal invasion.

After Midway, the US knew they had to strike and strike hard. But as I pointed out in Dxun Memories (And wax lyrical about in Return From Exile, the next one) Our troops were fighting two wars. One against the Axis, and the other at the upper echelon against the other services trying to steal the funding they needed. When MacArthur in Australia suggested that we invade Rabaul, the Navy (who didn't want the Army to win the war without them), split the South Pacific into two sections about 1000 miles apart, SWPOA [Southwest Pacific Operations area](MacArthur) and COMSOPAC (Commander, South Pacific), which was an all Navy show. Then Nimitz received orders from CNO Earnest King; take Guadalcanal (At the far western edge of COMSOPAC), leaving MacArthur sitting there doing nothing for almost two years.

If you had asked anyone who knew the state of the US military, and especially the Marines who would have to lead that ground attack in June of 1942, they would have told you we couldn't have successfully invaded the Hawaiian Islands, even unopposed. Compared to their manning in 1939 (a little over a thousand officers and just over 13,000 'other ranks', the Corps had grown by 1000%, meaning that some old hand, some were well trained, but most were barely out of boot camp. As an example, it wasn't until 1941 that the Marine corps Commandant rated a rank higher than Major General (A division Commander. Lieutenant General commands a Corps [three divisions] in the Army)

While the Marines themselves pointed at all of the problems, especially not enough fully trained Marines to guarantee victory, it went ahead anyway.

The preparations were a farce, cargo improperly loaded back in the states (By Naval hands) had to be reloaded to conform to Marine needs. The Longshoremen Union in New Zealand refusing to move it except during Union sanctioned hours, meaning these troops had to reload it correctly (Called Combat Loading. PM me to understand the difference) the rehearsal in Fiji only highlighting the flaws. Every problem ignored by the high command. Then when they arrived at their targets, the Navy refused to supply men to shift cargo from the boats to dumps on shore which was standard procedure. Not enough ramp style landing craft (So famous [and what the war movies portray] later in the war, and at Normandy), causing problems moving trucks artillery and the engineering equipment destined to complete that runway that never even got off the ships.

But on 7 August 1942, Jack Fletcher led the fleet that hit Guadalcanal, Tulagi, and Gavutu islands. We landed almost unopposed on Guadalcanal and grabbed the airfield they were building by the second day, but less than eight hours after that, Fletcher send an urgent message to Pearl Harbor, claiming that he had lost too many aircraft (He had all three of our operational carriers in the Pacific at the time; Enterprise[90 aircraft], Saratoga [78 aircraft] and Hornet[90 aircraft]. over 250 aircraft. His losses were 19, only 14 of them fighters. If you want to argue that Hornet was alrrady there, it's even worse, 270 aircraft.) and was short on fuel and had to withdraw. He informed Marine General Archibald Vandergrift of this at 1830 of that same day, 9 August.

Six hours later, came the 1st Battle of Savo Island (there were 4) after this 'I can't stay any longer' claim had been made, (not before as the Navy's official history records it) and using that as an excuse, the Navy sailed away with everything not already on the beach. Of the 1st Marine Division (16,000 men), 11,000 men had gotten ashore with less than half of their supplies, and none of their heavy artillery. Three thousand men that had taken Tulagi, and Gavutu (2800+ survivors of the 2nd Battalion 1st Division, the 2nd Raider Battalion, and 1st Parachute Battalion, both added to the 1st Marine Division so we're talking 21,000 total assigned) had to be shuttled from those islands to the main force using the few boats that had been abandoned when the Navy ran.

Henderson Field, the reason they were there, and later what kept them alive, was completed using captured Japanese equipment, and Marines that should have been protecting it working with hand tools to get it ready for even minimal use. They could thank the original Japanese Naval construction troops (450 compared to the soon to be 13,000 plus Marines) for most of the food they had, and the equipment down to picks and shovels to finish the job.

While the Marines performed miracles, the Navy dithered. There were two months where supplies and reinforcements were run in using small groups of APDs (WWI destroyers with half their engines ripped out. Called High Speed transports, though that was only if you compared them to a standard Merchant ship of the time, and a Battalion [600 men] needed 4 APDs) that would offload and run like hell before they were seen, dumping barrels of fuel for the planes and making the Marines take the few boats they had to tow it ashore, then moving them by hand.

COMSOPAC, Robert Ghormley who was now in charge, sent a desperate message on 16 October 1942 saying his forces were wholly inadequate (A direct quote), and he needed reinforcements. But he wasn't asking for more troops, he was asking for more _ships_, and his wish list read like a kid at Christmas asking for the moon and the Green cheese that went with it. He was relieved, and William 'Bull' Halsey took over. He didn't whine, he supplied the marines, fought the battle he had been given with what he had, and he won. He was one of the first Admirals who didn't just say 'do it' and blame the Marines if they failed due to their lacking supplies. Every landing he commanded from the start was later used to teach later cadets how to do it right the first time.

Back in 1945, they made a John Wayne movie Named Back to Bataan. As they were shooting it, the POWs held in a POW camp there at Cabanatuan had just been rescued by a daring Army Ranger raid. Those actual POWs were dragooned into shooting a scene for the end of the movie where they were marched past the cameras, and as faces were shown, their names were given.

If we remade the Movie Guadalcanal Diary today, the men who finally turned the islands over to the army in November would have looked like those real POWs. Of the survivors of the First Marine Division (about 11,000), 70% had malaria, and the average man had lost 22 pounds. Picture being starved enough that you go from 176 (My average weight now) to 154 in about two months.

They won because they wouldn't give up, fought even while they starved, and gave us a victory our high command didn't deserve. The Marines have a tradition of victory, and they can name exactly three times in the last 230 years where they lost a battle. My favorite song in this new Millennium is 'I'm proud to be an American', because it doesn't praise our nation, it praises all of those brave men that died so I could write this without being told by my own government that I don't have the right to say it.

As much as I would like to say, as John Paul Jones did, 'my country right or wrong', I have learned of too many time when my country, my government was wrong.

While the background of Dxun Memories, all of the stupid officers and even more stupid decisions might read like I had made it up from wholecloth, (Defined as pretty much out and out lies) the situations I portray did happen in reality. I had more than five _centuries_ of history where idiot officers expected the Moon from their troops and won anyway.

For the interim between the Mandalorian Wars and when Revan came against them, think of this:

As a student of history, the things about the US that has always bothered me are that we tend to start a war wholly inadequate, Rush production and training to get what's needed into the field throwing half trained men into the battle, and by luck, win. Then once peace sets in rush away from a war footing so fast I'm surprised the Nation doesn't suffer from permanent whiplash, and that when we do, the bean counters make sure the warriors we might need later aren't around for long. As I had them do with Karath, the men who fought and survived end up on the sidelines as fast as you can say 'you're a reserve officer, we're cutting back to just the professionals' so we can be just as inept the next time around.

When a war starts, we promote the warriors because we have to, but back in Washington the senior bean counters have a little list with the ranks the warriors had attained before the war is marked. This is called the Permanent Rank; adjusted by the time since it was created to determine what rank they would attain _in peace time if the war had not happened_. After the war, it's what you go back to. As an example, George Armstrong Custer, who had only reached 1st lieutenant before the War Between the States began, and by Gettysburg was a Major General in command of a Cavalry division, was returned to his _permanent_ rank of Major at war's end, and died at the Little Big Horn 11 years later as a mere lieutenant colonel in command of a single regiment. After all, we don't need as large an army in peace as we do in war, right?

In Griffin's 'Brotherhood of War' a Captain that has already commanded an independent force in Korea, and is now a Chief Staff to a Division (A Major's slot) is dumped not because he can't do the job he's doing, but because he hasn't been everything the Army expects him to be by that time, (such as VD officer, Entertainment officer, Mess officer, and the nauseating list goes on) while there are men back in the States that are considered qualified for that position without ever seeing combat because they have done this.

As for rushing away from it; in 1950, the US military was in a shambles. Acting in Truman's behalf to make the military more cohesive, the second Secretary of Defense, Louis Arthur Johnson in 1948 and 49 slashed defense budgets looking only at redundancy and cost, not what was necessary to carry out their mission. He told the Marines that since we'd never have to do another amphibious landing (According to Chief of Staff of the Army Omar Bradley), that they were nothing more than an over glorified Naval Police force, and since the Air Force could bomb anywhere on the planet with nuclear weapons, we didn't even need the Navy.

So when the Koreans attacked in July of 1950 (On my birth date but three years before I was born), Truman asked all of the Joint Chiefs what we could do. The Air Force suggested using Nukes and blowing the entire peninsula off the map because tactical air was a thing of the past as far as they were concerned. The navy told him flat out that thanks to having most of their ships in mothballs or already scrapped, they could not even blockade the Koreans, and would need time to even gather the ships before they could transport additional troops, or even supply the men already there. Though they could suggest a non-nuclear tactical response with carriers and Marine pilots.

The Army had some understrength divisions with few tanks, but none that could stand up to the T34, because the heavier tanks that could were stateside or in the Philippines in storage; Japan (Where our army for the Pacific was stationed, except for about a thousand in Korea orignally), had bridges too weak to support them. It would take a sealift to rival Normandy to get men there faster. None of our armed forces even had a tithe of people who had seen combat; the bean counters had seen to that.

As for the Marines, they had gone from about six divisions in 1945, to two half strength divisions in 1950. They had to combine both of those just to have the division that later fought in Korea. Even then they had almost lost their ground attack aircraft because the Air Force could do that job. As history showed, Johnson, and Truman, were dead wrong, and our men paid for it with their lives.

We did it again after the Gulf war, when Clinton and his minions raped the Defense budget for the 'peace dividend'. It was stated in the Press that in 2002, the US military did not have the sea and airlift necessary to have pulled Desert Storm again. Without the prepositioned weapons in Saudi and Kuwait, we'd be still waiting to fight Saddam (Though Operation Iraqi Freedom was only partially legal. Again, PM me if you want the truth).

The scene in Dxun Memories where Marai comments on the training regimen used by her Division (But not her own Battalion) are right out of what the Soviet Union was doing right up until the Berlin Wall fell; with set piece training battles where the units succeed in their mission with casualties within about 5% of what they would have anticipated, ammunition expended within the norms, and in almost exactly the time allotted for the maneuver, right out of what their officer handbooks said should happen if everything went right. Worse for them,_ we knew it._

As someone once said, the first law of war is Murphy's Law. Our own services got wake up calls during wargames before WWII. In 1935, the Pacific fleet fought a war game where the Red Force (Japan) was going to strike at Pearl Harbor, with the carriers and escorts of that fleet simulating an attack after the fleet sortied to engage. Blue force (All of the other surfaces ships) would try to stop them. The Red commander struck at dawn with full deck strikes while blue force was still in harbor warming up to depart. The referees stated that every ship in harbor was sunk before they could sail. The admirals in charge ignored it as a fluke. The Japanese would declare war first, right?

In 1936 in I think it was Mississippi, the Army had a war game with equally matched forces. One side had a man named George Patton in charge of their tanks. Standard doctrine then was that tanks supported infantry (Look at the design of the M3 tanks, the A [Lee] had a light machine gun in the turret while the B [Grant] had a 37mm cannon, both with a 75mm side mount to shoot up bunkers). Patton had read a book by Hans Guderian (The father of the Blitzkrieg) and without orders formed his tanks as a unit with infantry supporting _them_. He blew through the men facing him, raced across country with the enemy trying to figure out what he was doing, and twelve hours into a three day game, he captured the enemy headquarters, and it was over. He was ordered back to his start line. The reason? He _cheated_.

The second law of war; if you wanted a fair fight, take up boxing, not the military.

But it goes on even now. Watch the movies Heartbreak Ridge and Down Periscope, and you see modern American officers doing the same damn thing.

For me this is going to be both hard and fun. You see, I never recreated a battle of Midway to precede Dxun, and now I have to.


End file.
